Trip Reports

• Time of Year: Spring
• Travel Method: Shuttle Service
• Resort: ASR
• Accommodations: Standard Room
• Ages Represented in Group: Adult
• WDW Experience Represented in Group: Rookie
• Comments: Prim and her friend Ginger spent a wonderful week at WDW. They stayed at ASMR, kept track of their daily spending, and maintained a running total of the number of squished coins they collected. This is a wonderful report, well written, and full of tips, summary information, and details on trip planning.

Day 0

Exactly what is Day 0? It's really a culmination of all the days you spent preparing for your Walt Disney World trip. In my case, that would be approximately 300 days. When I actually admit to myself and others how much time I've spent on studying WDW, I begin to wonder if I'm mentally stable. Well, I'm hoping all the work (and fun) paid off, and that this trip goes as smoothly as can be expected when flying over 1000 miles...to the #1 travel destination in the world...for the first time.

I can't stand trip reports that don't immediately tell you about the people traveling. I mean, you spend half the time reading the report trying to figure out if Sandy is a guy or gal, if Sandy is young or old, etc. With that said, I, me, or whatever I refer to myself as on any given day, refers to Prim; a young, female, 38 year old program administrator with a high tech marketing company. My roommate and best friend is my traveling companion, Ginger, and she is a young 36. We must emphasis "young" because we plan on becoming kids again for one week in March. That's what the magic is all about, and we plan on seeing and experiences things just like we use to when we were 9 or 10 and didn't have a care in the world. I mean, for $2000, if I want to walk around WDW with Goofy ears, Mickey gloves, and Donald feet, then by gosh, I plan on doing so and laughing all the way.

The idea for this trip started as a dream, as I'm sure many WDW trips start. I saw the 1-800 number on the t.v., called and requested the vacation video, received it, and so began the saga. I was mesmerized and watched the stupid thing 4-5 times in a row. My roommate was begging me to please TURN IT OFF, so I just filed this vacation idea in my head and swore to not let this dream die. Well, one afternoon, Ginger decided to do the twice weekly mowing that's required of the backyard in the miserable heat of the summer (welcome to Austin, TX), so off she went, which of course gave me another chance to view "the video." I swear, I became possessed. I don't really even remember what happened the next few minutes...all I know was that the next thing I remember, I was telling Ginger how I had just booked both of us for a week stay at the Comfort Inn offsite. As sweat was dripping down her beet red "I've been mowing the lawn in 102 degree heat" face, she just nodded at me with this look of disbelief and hit the showers. I think she thought the heat had affected her a little bit more than usual, but none the less, the trip was on.

The next 299 days became a blur. I surfed the Internet like a rabid dog. I copied off more than 300 pages of notes, reviews, trip reports, statistics, etc. on everything from menus to Hidden Mickeys. I couldn't read stuff fast enough. My friends thought I was nuts. Ginger just humored me, but I really think that deep down, she thought I had really stepped over that 'invisible line.' I would walk in the front door at home with a huge stack of papers in my arms, and proudly present it as my daily WDW research. You know, similar to the cat with a dead mouse in his mouth...proud as punch, but not really knowing what possessed us to do such a thing.

Anyway, because I did SO much research on this trip, I felt I should share the really good books, websites, and other freebie type info that is available to the public in helping plan a WDW excursion. I think I should say right now that no one, either author or webmaster, has paid me for these comments, even though donations are always welcome. I'm just another crazy Disney fan that feels that my opinions and thoughts could be helpful to other fanatics like myself. Of course, I probably have illusions of grandeur, but if you've read this far, then you might as well keep going.

When it comes to websites, I have picked 5 really good ones. The official Disney website is www.disney.com. (Catchy name, huh?) Anyway, it does have alot of basic Disney park info, but my favorite part of this website that makes it unique is that you can see live action shots of the 3 parks. You have a choice of seeing 3 different time lapsed shots of the parks-the last hour, today's park opening to the present, or yesterday for the entire time the park was opened. Really, its kinda boring, but it puts you at the park for a short moment, and that was, and is, a thrill for me. After looking at these numerous times, you will begin to believe them when they say it rains almost everyday. There always seems to be water drops on the lens, so take a raincoat or plan on buying a bright yellow Mickey poncho when you get there. However, beware of some of the info on the website regarding vacation packages. They sound great, but there are many "unsaid" stipulations with many on-site motels being already booked months in advance. (More about that later) Anyway, don't get your hopes up for that "dream vacation package" that Disney promotes until you have a confirmation number in your hot little hand.

Another great website is members.aol.com/DVClubber/dvchome.htm. This is Brian Bennett's page, and this guy is a Disney FANATIC! This is a guy that wrote a 40 page trip report, ok? I mean, he lives the Disney dream. I wrote him and told him that I was going to write the world s best trip report...he wrote back and said "How could you?...I've already written it!" As a compliment to him, he is the main reason my printer screams when I walk in the room. I printed every trip report on his website. (Even his, which comes out to about 50 pages on my printer). There is no greater source of good information than real experiences and comments from people that have been to Disneyworld. He has trip reports from old people, young people, people with triplets, people with their 90 year old grandmother, people with new babies, etc. Get the drift? These people share every good and bad experience that could possibly happen on a trip and they're not shy about telling the world. They'll tell you if the food stinks, if the hotel front desk workers were rude, if the waiter was bad, if the ride made them throw up, if the dining show was a waste of money, if the lines were horrendously long, etc. These reports are a 'must read' for anyone traveling to WDW. Besides his trip reports, Brian has revamped his website and I swear, I think it has more info than it originally did...if that is possible.

Another loaded site is pages.prodigy.com/lampwick. Augie Ray's page has link after link after link...probably close to 100. If you decide to try out this site, plan on staying for awhile. This has probably the most depth of any website on Disney. Not only does it cover the basic Disney stuff; i.e. ticket prices, park hours, phone numbers, etc., but it has unique info such as getting a job with the Disney company, planning a wedding at WDW, buying a home in Celebration (the Disneyworld community), etc. Great place, but you will end up spending hours there and never get the house cleaned like you promised.

I just stumbled upon this next website by accident. The URL is drn.zippo.com/news-bin/wwwnews?-sN+rec.arts.disney.parks. This website is similar to a chat room in that people ask questions, other people answer, and yet other people just make strange comments about the questions and answers. You can run onto some weird comments and "conversations", but overall, the people that surf this page have ALOT of knowledge about WDW. You don't have to ask anything or even answer anything...just surf and read other peoples comments. Tell Feral Mermaid "hi" if you decide to participate.

I saved my favorite sight for last. The URL is wdn.com/dwills/. Simply titled, its the Unofficial WDW Information Guide. I found it when I first started Disney surfing, and I return to it almost daily. It's easy to read, full of info, and after reading it, you wish you knew ole Deb (the webmaster). She sounds like a well-adjusted, fun individual that happens to love Disney. I say well-adjusted because after surfing as many Disney websites as I have, you really wonder about the guy or gal on the other end of the keyboard. (Trust me...if you do alot of Disney surfing, you will know what I mean. Some of these people have WAY too much time on their hands). Deb gives you reviews of restaurants, hotels, and attractions, along with ticket prices, park hours, parades, shows, etc. She has a whole section on Hidden Mickeys and Penny Presses. (More later on the penny presses.) She is also the keeper of menus which I found to be really interesting. Deb's fans have sent her actual menus (with prices) from various WDW restaurants to post onto her web page. This is a great way to checkout a restaurant ahead of time, make those reservations 60 days in advance, and still know what you're in for in the way of menu selections and money. If you are on a budget and don't want to spend $25 for a meal, you'll know from looking at the menus to probably not eat dinner at the California Grill or the Coral Seas. If you are a vegetarian, the menu from O'Hanas will probably make you emotionally and physically ill. If you want to try an exotic alcoholic drink, you will find the menu from Planet Hollywood to be a drinkers delight. She doesn't have a menu from every restaurant, but the selection she does have is quite extensive. Basically, it's a great way to plan ahead. I had our dinners booked 60 days in advance because of these menus..it was that simple. Anyway, I could go on and on about this site...just visit and see for yourself.

Enough about the Internet. Now for those of you who hate the idea of even turning on a computer.....I recommend 1 book overwhelmingly, and 1 book just for the sugar content. The sugary one is, of course, "The Official Guide to Walt Disney World" by Birnbaum. I read this before I read any other book and before surfing any website. It does make you happy. It does make you want to go. It does have alot of information. But, give me a break..if everything was that rosy, you'd never leave WDW. Of course, look at the title....Disney isn't going to stick their name on any book that tells you that Mickey Mouse probably smokes and drinks when not in costume. In this book, every ride is fun, every hotel is perfect, every restaurant a culinary delight. The crowds are always manageable, the heat is really not that bad, and you never meet a rude person. OK, OK, OK! Since I seem to be slamming the book, I feel that I should mention some of its good features. The book does tell interesting trivia facts, such as the structure of Cinderella's castle being out of fiberglass, and that the sand for the beaches at the various resorts came out of the swamp, aka lagoon, when it was originally cleaned out. It also has some coupons in the back, but I probably wouldn't buy this book after reading it if I could do it over. Go to the library first and borrow it instead of spending $12. (I'm sorry Mrs. Birnbaum...I have to be honest.)

Now, on the other side of that coin is a book that I've read so much that the binding is broken and I've only had it about 6 months. Again, I'm not being paid by this guy, (but I would be a good spokesperson, Bob, if you're looking).....The book is entitled "The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World" by Bob Sehlinger. It lays down the facts in an honest, realistic fashion. We all know that if you go to WDW in August, you're going to be in a crowded park and it's gonna be pretty darn hot. C'mon, even Disney can't help that. Well, Bob tells it to you about that bluntly, and in most cases, he flat out tells you that you've basically lost your mind if you go certain times of the year. He tells you what rides will "muss your doo" (translated, screw up your hairdo), and which rides will probably make you sicker than a dog. You can find out which restaurants are WAY overrated and WAY overpriced. Among other things, you will learn where to find the Disney characters, where to view the parades, what to pack and not pack, the transportation routes throughout the parks, and in-depth reviews of every ride and every show. There is a chapter about Pleasure Island, Discovery Island, and all the water parks. He has a section on touring with children, the elderly, and the disabled. He gives you 1 and 2 day touring plans with the basic premise that "if you think a vacation at Disneyworld is like going to the beach, you're nuts." The book is full of funny and honest, information, and I will be living proof if his touring plans work, because I plan on basically following every one of them. He also shows his sense of humor by making the comment that if all else fails, you can use his book to sit on when waiting for a parade to start. Its around $15-16, and if you don't buy this, then 'shame on you.' It will be the best money you spend in preparing for Disneyworld. I'm not an avid reader, but I had this 400 page book read in 1 day. I couldn't put it down...period.

There are 2 things I am going to try to do (besides have a blast..) while at the parks and I've mentioned them both briefly in the proceeding pages. One of these is free, and the other one is almost free. Yes, free...and that is a word that is NOT in the WDW dictionary. After you add up the money you've spent and the fact that you haven't even left yet, the word 'free' should send you into a frenzy. One of these "freebies" is to enjoy, and "search out", the overlooked park attractions. Go to Deb's Disney page (by gosh, I'm gonna get you to this page one way or the other) and look under WDWIG. Then go to overlooked attractions and find over 60 "special treats" that you can experience throughout the parks and resorts that you might miss in the hustle and bustle of the trip. Unusual and fun attractions such as the Dancing Fountain shows and the MetLife Good News Gazette at Epcot, the Flag Retreat Ceremony at MK, and the "Singin in the Rain" umbrella at MGM. Remember, this whole trip is about "remembering the magic", and the little things can give you more magic than 100 trips on Space Mountain.

Secondly, one of the cheapest (not quite free) souvenirs that you can get at WDW is at a Penny &/or Quarter Press. These coin machines will imprint a design (press) on your penny for 2 quarters (51 cents/each) and also a quarter for 3 quarters (1.00/each). There are 36 machines that will "press" 89 unique penny images and 6 quarter images, such as the different Disney characters, Jungle Cruise boat, Cinderella Castle, etc. Go to Deb's sight (yes, again...and no, I'm not secretly related to her) to find the link to the penny press website. Kenny Cottrell, the penny press guru and webpage author, gives 2 good tips: use pre-1982 pennies (no zinc content), and secondly, press the design on the face for a better reproduction. It sounds like great fun to me, and for $45, you could get all 89 designs if you so desired. If that sounds absolutely ridiculous, perhaps you should just focus on your favorite character and collect all the Goofy designs, for example. Any way you look at it, the presses will be a constant reminder of your trip...and at only 51 cents a pop!

Be reminded, I haven't even left yet and I've already written 4 pages just about preparation. I believe that this will be really beneficial in seeing all we want to see and do in the 7 days we will be there. I can't imagine going and not having a clue about what I wanted to do. Schelinger talks in his book about how people just walk in the front gates at the Magic Kingdom and stand there with their mouths wide open staring at the Pepto-Bismol castle while hundreds of people rush by them to get on Space Mountain or some other popular ride. In otherwords, get your act together and plan ahead or you will spend most of your time either back tracking all over the parks (only 43 acres...what's a little hike?), or waiting in really long lines for most of the rides and shows. Neither sound too much fun to me, so I plan on at least having a good idea of what to do first and what to see before the crowds get to large as to enjoy the parks. I swore to Ginger and to myself to not get so absorbed in the touring plans that it makes "enjoying" the parks a military exercise. I do realize the importance of getting to some rides and shows quickly, but I'm not going to try to outrun Carl Lewis to get on Splash Mountain.

I can't go on without a final comment about going during certain times of the year. We originally had scheduled this trip for Dec. 29-Jan. 4th. We thought it would be really neat to see Disney during the holidays and to spend New Years Eve at the "most magical place in the world." Well, I ended up having neck surgery on New Years Eve and the trip had to be moved to March. This really turned out to be a blessing in disguise. They say that there is no place as beautiful as WDW during the Christmas season, and for missing that, we are sad. However, according to every book written, the week between Christmas and New Years is the most crowded with guests sometimes exceeding 70,000 per day. Thus, as Bob puts it in his book, "if you don't mind feeling the breath of the person behind you on your neck, then the lines won't bother you." Get it? You would need a big dose of Christmas patience and Christmas cheer to get through the parks at this time. Also, even when I called in July (5 months in advance), I couldn't get a room on-site at that time of the year that fit into our budget. Sure, I could get a room at the Grand Floridian, but we couldn't justify spending $500 a night for a room. We calculated how many hours we would spend in the room and that came out to around $70 an hour to sleep and bathe. For the March trip, I booked 6 nights at the All Star Music Resort for $94/night (with tax). This was more than we had previously budgeted for the Comfort Inn offsite, but being on site has its advantages. It will allow unlimited use of the WDW transportation system, refillable soda mugs (more on this later), delivery of anything we buy at the parks directly to our rooms, and the basic safety and security issues of being 2 single women in a strange town. Also, I expect, and hope to receive, the Disney courtesy from the hotel staff that you read and hear about constantly from previous guests. As an extra plus, when I went to rebook our airline tickets, they were $100 cheaper since we weren't flying at such a busy time of the year. So, overall, the surgery was God's way of telling us that everything was going to be ok and that the March trip was going to be a winner!

As I wrote the report, I tried to include costs for meals, and the rating we gave each ride out of 10, with 10 being "don't miss it or you're crazy". Do remember that we are in our upper 30's. so some rides/attractions we enjoyed might not even be remotely interesting to a teenager, and perhaps too scary for a young child. We saw too many parents basically "forcing" their children onto rides while the kid screamed and cried through the entire queue area. If that's not abuse, I don't know what is, and it was a sick look at parenthood in our society. Also, we went in March when the lines are suppose to be short. I have nothing to compare it with, but it didn't seem too bad to us. However, we ran into a Canadian couple on the bus and the wife was shocked at the crowds. She said they always go in October and that there is no crowd at all then. So ,the line waits are an estimate of the March crowd, whether that is light or heavy is up to each, individual person.

Day 1, March 16th

Well, Day 1 finally arrived and it's been a true test of diligence and persistence. As I said before, this trip was originally scheduled for X-mas time, and was postponed due to my neck surgery. Then, 4 days before our scheduled departure, my beloved and favorite aunt passed away suddenly and I frantically flew home for the funeral. I arrived back in Austin at 5PM, March 15th, exactly 12 hours before we were to leave for Orlando the next morning. My Aunt's death put a slight damper on our trip and Ginger and I both fondly remembered her throughout the week.. I dedicate this trip report to her and know in my heart that she was with us on every ride, even Tower of Terror.

Unfortunately, we flew American Airlines and we sat on the runway for 1 hour the next morning while they "jump started" the left engine. That's so reassuring to have the Captain announce that we have no left engine, and then tell us that the airport is under some sort of "contract labor" agreement and we would just have to wait for a worker to bring us a part. I had an idea.....how about we just all get off this broken down heap with the 1 good engine ,and hop on another plane. How 'bout that?!?!?! Well, we get up in the air and of course, the ride feels like "1 bump into the night" after another, and we land at DFW 1 hr. late. Can you guess where this is going???? Yes, we missed our connecting flight, and if anyone is interested, AA overbooks all flights, so we couldn't even leave DFW til the 3rd flight out which was at 1pm. Now remember, we were to have landed in Orlando at 11:30, so now we're looking at leaving Dallas after we were to have already landed in Florida. By now, I'm mad, Ginger is livid, and I'm seeing doom. To make a long story short, after a 3 hr. layover, numerous loud conversations with extremely rude AA employees, $200 of flight vouchers, and 2 flights later, we leave at 2:30. By the time we got off that plane in Orlando and retrieved our "lost luggage", we had been flying or en route for 12 hrs. I had flown AA's competitor, (which I won't name but whose name begins with SOUTH and ends in WEST), when I had to rush home for the funeral, and it was a wonderful flying experience. All the flights were on time, the employees friendly, and the flights error-free. The opposite can be said for AA. After I finish this trip report, I will be writing a scathing letter to AA regarding the total lack of concern on the employees part and the basic fact that we were such an inconvenience in their regularly exciting and perfect world as a AA counter person. I will never fly AA again (except to use the $200 of flight vouchers which they gave us to keep Ginger from jumping over the ticket counter.) And remember, these are the people that want a 10% pay raise.....

Ok, Ok, enough gloom. The flight to Orlando was much better than the Austin to DFW flight and they showed Toy Story en route, so that helped us get over our anger and focus on the week ahead. We took the Mears shuttle ($44 for 2 w/coupons) to the All Star Music. I believe I know the real reason that you tip the drivers after you arrive at the hotel. It has nothing to do with the service....it's an offering to the Gods that watch over you en route from the airport to the hotel. This guy drove like a nut, almost hitting multiple vehicles and curbs, and when he applied the brakes, HE APPLIED THE BRAKES! We flew out of the van, kissing the ground as we arrived, and checked in to our rooms. We paid $94/night for a "landscape view" and got a room on the 2nd floor of the Jazz Inn. It was one of the easiest check-ins I've ever experienced, contrary to some of the other trip reports I have read. (I guess we paid our penance with the airport disaster). We looked like typical tourists with our mouths hanging open throughout the check-in process. The lobby was bright red, purple, green....you know, all those God awful colors that seem to look wonderful at WDW. I was a bit apprehensive when I saw that we had a room on the 2nd floor because I had read trip reports about the terrible noise on this floor. We were never bothered by any noise (except for the turbo toilets, and yes, they are loud), but besides that, we never heard anything. Of course, we only spent time in the room to shower and sleep, so noise was never a factor. No, our room wasn't gigantic or fancy, but for what we paid, it was just fine. I do want to mention that we had no bathtub. I understand why because it makes the room easily handicapped accessible, and bathtubs are a pain for maintenance reasons. However, I did have visions of soaking my worn out old body in the tub at night, and that was kinda disappointing. Anyway, we unpacked, and just as rumored, we found the dorm size frig "hidden behind a fake door in the dresser. We also located the wall safe, and yes, they weren't kidding when they said it is the size of a laptop computer. In otherwords, your video camera WILL NOT fit in this safe. Yes, the bedspread was ugly, but the bed was great.

By now, it was 6pm and we had reservations at the California Grill at 7:30. I knew that we would never make it, so we canceled and just decided to rest a bit and go over to the Village Marketplace later. This was the only trip we had the pleasure of standing for the entire bus trip. After we got off the bus at VM, I decided that a prerequisite to becoming a driver on the WDW property was to drive like a bat out of h***.

We got to the VM and immediately put our name on the waiting list at Rainforest Cafe. I know you've probably read about the terrible wait to eat here. Well, here's the facts....I put our name on the list at 8:45 and we were seated at 10:15. Get it? Put your name on the list and just enjoy the shopping and chill out. I read trip reports where the people almost stroke out about the wait. Well, save the nervous breakdown, and just plan on a 1-2 hr wait. We had a wonderful time just shopping and enjoying the area. It was beautiful at night, and the merchandise in the stores was to "die for." When 10:15 arrived, they called our name and we were led through many different "rainforest areas", where we were finally seated in the bird area. It was fantastic! A "parrot" sang in our ear, tropical birds chirped, and bats came out every 10 minutes or so and squeaked at us as we relaxed. Next to our table, we had a light rainfall coming down constantly with a light mist (dry ice) floating over us throughout the meal. Our waitress recommended the meal and we took her advice. Ginger had the Congo Mogambo ($14), a shrimp pasta, and I had the Mojo Bones ($16), bbq ribs. The meal was fabulous!! After the week was over, this was still our favorite meal. I can't say enough for the quantity of food (HUGE portions), the quality of the food, and the great atmosphere in the restaurant. Total bill with tip was $54 and worth every penny. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone. They have recently built one in Dallas and when we go up there, which is only 3 hrs away, we plan on eating there again. I'm telling you....if you don't experience this place, you've missed great food and a fun experience. I asked our waitress, Lorisa, for a menu and she was happy to give me one.( I saved all sorts of fun things from the trip to make a WDW scrapbook that I hope will end up being a "one-of-a-kind.")

We had originally planned to go to bed early tonight since we had been up since 4am, but of course, that didn't happen...so around midnight, we fell into bed.

Cruella De Ville of the Day - the 2 AA counter women at DFW share this dubious honor. I refuse to print their names, but if I have anything to do with it, they will both be looking for employment after my letter to AA.....maybe swabbing the toilets at the local Motel 6.

Ariel and Eric of the Day - Clint and Stephanie Biggs of Austin, Tx. This cute couple and their 2 sons were on that original wicked flight from Austin and they got bumped around just like us. How would you like to entertain 2 boys, (~2 & 8 yrs old), in the airport for 3 hours? They did and smiled through the whole thing. It was a pleasure to see two young people who were as caring and loving as they were, and I applaud their relationship with each other and their children.

GM Test Track Driver of the Day - Our bus driver to VM gets this honor. As I said, we had to stand this trip and we soon learned that when they say "standing passengers need to hold onto the railing." that they mean it. Our driver was probably topping out at about 50 or so and suddenly had to apply his brakes....Well, all of us standing lunged forward, and Ginger being behind me and shorter than me, slammed her chin into my back. This caused a sore that produced a pretty scab that we laughed about all week. We also decided that we needed to use more fabric softener in our wash.

Total spent for the day - $168

Day 2, March 17

The weather was beautiful today-highs in the upper 70's. We decided last night to blow off early entry, get some good rest, and get up around 8am. We got to MK about 10:30. Main Street was packed and I started to have horrible thoughts about crowds and how we were so bad to totally disregard Schelinger's biggest point in his book to "GET TO THE PARKS EARLY!!!" We immediately walked to Tomorrowland and I felt better as the crowd seemed to be alot less intense once you got away from that terrible main gate area. The line for SM and AE was already 1 hr., so we decided to go on some of the less popular rides. We walked right onto the Timekeeper (6/10). Robin Williams was great as the Timekeeper, and in typical form, many of his jokes were over the heads of many people. We then went onto Take a Flight (4/10), a very simple ride through the ages of aviation. Nothing to write home about, but relaxing and kinda fun. Carousel of Progress was next (7/10). We sat in the front row, so we could REALLY hear the "great, big, beautiful tomorrow" song. Interesting, yet boring. I felt like I was in a high school history class. However, I have to say that a month after our return, we're still talking about the ride...hmmm, maybe it really did have an impact. We were both fascinated with Rover, the animatronic dog. By the way, how old is Rover by the last scene? My guess would be around 90 yrs. old and he weathered the years better than anyone. TTA had no waiting so we hopped on it and took a leisurely trip around TL (3/10). Ginger got her first look at SM (I had been on the ride at DL), and decided she wanted to try it out later.

After TL, we left for Fantasyland. We walked right into a group of characters and I frantically started groping for my autograph books. I had 1 for us and 1 for Alex, my "little girl" in Dallas. We got autographs from the Queen of Hearts, Mad Hatter, Tweedledee, and Tweedledum. Ginger handed the book to Tweedledum and he started running off with it. Well, Ginger started chasing him, and it was a classic moment to see a 36 yr. old woman chasing a child's book character around the Mad Tea Party. We got the typical photos with the characters and went on our way. I was so excited to have run right into some characters that I just knew that this was a good omen (and it was.)

We rode Snow Whites Adventure (4/10) with about a 10 minute wait. Cute, but really geared towards very young children.. We then walked onto the Lion King (7/10), which in Ginger's opinion is the best Disney movie ever made. The preshow was great and the "inside show" was cute. At the end, when they played 'Circle of Life', I had chill bumps all over. If you don't either cry or feel wonderful about life after that movie, you're just plain sick. By now it was 1:30 and we hadn't had anything to eat, so we stopped at Lumieres Kitchen for a footlong ($3.80 each). Neither one of us finished our dogs (which speaks volumes when 2 adults can't finish a hotdog.) Maybe it had something to do with the little,black, flying insects that we had to dodge the entire meal. Maybe it had something to do with the hundreds of trays with half eaten food all over them that were everywhere. I don't know, but we give the experience about a (-5/10).

We decided to go to Toon Town to try to see "The Duck". Let me tell you...there's no person on this planet that worships Donald Duck like my roommate. She has probably 200-300 DD items all over the house, ranging from cookie jars to punching bags. She also has a tattoo of DD on her upper arm. It's quite an obsession and her dream in life was to see him. Well, we went to Donald's boat and took WAY too many photos including the outside, the inside, the bell pull, and of course, the mailbox. I knew there was no way I was going to stop her, so I just wandered off and located a place to buy more film. I came back and she was snapping more photos of the d*** boat. We headed for the tent...you know, the one where the characters hang out. I prayed to God above that Donald would be in there. If he wasn't, the day would be ruined. We waited in the 'Mickey's Pals' line for about 20 minutes. We walked in....and TA DA....there he was right in the middle. As a side note, there was also Pluto, Minnie, and Goofy, but of course, no one existed in the whole world at that moment but DD. I looked at Ginger's face and her eyes were all watery and that made me tear up, so there we both stood with twenty 5 yr. olds, about to both breakdown. Ginger reached out her arms to give him a big hug and he did the same. They hugged and hugged as I snapped photo after photo. She showed him her tattoo and he made gestures like he couldn't believe a 36 yr. old woman would put him on her arm. He signed her autograph book that "he loved her", and as a side, that was the first thing she showed everyone at work. It really was a special moment to see an adult be so happy and acting so much like a child. We also got photos and autographs from everyone else and left that room high as kites. We were so pumped up that we decided to run back around the building and get in the 'Villians Room' line. We only waited in line 2-3 minutes and inside were Sheriff, Prince John, and Cruella De Ville. Cruella was the best, being a typical bitch and telling all of us what a "bother we were." We then ran back around the building, again, to get in the third and last line, the 'Princess Room' line. We hit another gold mine and saw Snow White, Belle, Mary Poppins, and Pocohantas. In that one building, we got 11 autographs. I would highly recommend this stop to all parents w/small children that are autograph seekers like us. We probably spent 1 hour going through the 3 rooms and worth every minute. By now, it was 3pm, so we decided to go back to the hotel and take a dip in the pool. We took the train (3/10) around to Main Street and arrived just in time to catch most of the 'Remember the Magic' parade (10/10) What a high!! We were both singing and dancing to that song and it made you "feel" the magic. So many Disney characters were in the parade - way to many to mention and we were 'bug-eyed' the entire time. We loved this parade and both left with HUGE smiles on our faces. What a great way to end our first visit at MK!

The pool did indeed feel good back at ASM, and we hung around there for about an hour or so. We then changed and got back around to MK around 7:30, so we decided to hit some of the more popular rides that we had missed earlier. We waited about 20 minutes to ride Jungle Cruise (3/10). What a big letdown. We had a crappy boat guide which will make or break this ride. You couldn't hear her, and what jokes you could hear weren't the least bit funny. We then walked onto Pirates of the Caribbean (6/10). Classic Disney...By now it was 8:45, and I knew if we ran like mad, we could catch Space Mountain. We waited in line 30 minutes-probably the longest 30 minutes of Ginger's life. She was sweating bullets and wringing her hands. You know, Disney is great for setting the stage in the queue areas and by the time we got up there, between the darkness, the "spacey" music, and the screaming passengers, she had almost talked herself out of the ride. I kept trying to reassure her, but it was falling on deaf ears, so I just let her go ahead and scare herself to death. When we were strapped in the seats, she turned around and looked at me like a cow being led to slaughter. Of course, she loved the ride and it was faster, rougher, and more thrilling than I had remembered. I, of course, rate this a (10/10). Ginger's opinion isn't quite that high...but who asked her?

By now, it was 10pm, so we ran to catch the bus. What a bummer of an experience! We waited, along with 200 other people, about 1 hr. for a bus. This was our only bad experience with the WDW transportation system...but what an experience. We were so tired, and standing in line with a bunch of other tired, cranky kids and parents is not a good time. To put salt on the wound, after we got on the bus, the driver told us we would have a 'slight detour' to avoid the traffic. By the time we got back to ASM, it was around 11:30. Of course, we hadn't eaten a thing since that delicious hotdog, so we ordered one of those famous ASM pizzas. It cost $12 and it could have tasted like the bottom of my shoe and I would have eaten it. However, it was pretty good and hit the spot. We crashed around 1am and decided once more to blow off early entry. (Are you starting to see a pattern??)

Sheriff of Nottingham for the Day - The guy at ASM that was actually getting paid to sit by the pool and watch a 3x3 patch of concrete dry. His goal in life was to prevent someone from scrawling their name in the concrete....and he was serious about it too.

Baloo Bear - The bus driver who we continued to have numerous times throughout the week that COULD NOT figure out the bus's wheelchair access ramp. This was our first night to ride with him and he had to go get another bus driver to come over and show him how to lift the ramp back into the bus. Well, this was an omen, because we had him 2 more times, and both times, he had to get help. The last time, he actually trapped a woman on the bus because he couldn't get the ramp down to let her off and they eventually had to go get us another bus. That poor woman is probably still sitting on that bus. All the time this is happening, he's just grinning and apologizing for the inconvenience, so how could you be mad? You would think that Disney would train the drivers in this area.

Pennies collected for the day - 13

Total spent for the day - $95

Day 3, March 18

As planned, we got up at 8am and got to Epcot around 10:30. Why and how does it take 2 women 2 1/2 hrs to shower and dress??? I mean, we totally boycotted makeup and it wasn't like we had to dress up or anything....geez.... Anyway, as we had figured, Future World was packed, so we leisurely strolled through some buildings on the way to World Showcase. We checked out a replica of the GM Test Track cars. Looked real neat...seated 6 with 2 seatbelts each. Walked through the AT&T Global Network and played an interactive game with some guy elsewhere in the building. It was fun to have to "work" with a total stranger to achieve the goal of knocking out all the blocks in "our" grid. After the game, we both stepped out of our booth, looked around, found each other, and waved and smiled. Another one of those moments when you realize that no matter what you read in the paper, there are some really neat people in the world.

Went on to WS and immediately bought our passport. I had read about them in many trip reports and thought it would be fun. I'm going to decorate mine a little differently, but it was a blast getting comments and stamps from every country. I know that this started out as a kid thing, but I loved it as an adult and would recommend it to everyone, regardless of age. We decided to take the clockwise route and hit Mexico first. We hit El Rio Tempo with no line and it was a cute ride through the Mexican forest (5/10). What I found interesting about Mexico was that it was the only country where all 3 of their park components (ride, restaurant, and shopping) were enclosed within 1 building. It really took you into the atmosphere and I found it a very special effect. The woman that signed our passport in Mexico wrote something about "drink some tequila for me." We all got a giggle out of that...why I don't know, but we did. We then proceeded through Norway, deciding the 45 minute wait for the Maelstrom wasn't worth it, so we just went on. (Neither one of us thought we would die without a trip through a North Sea storm ). Onto China where we stopped and watched the Wonders of China (6/10). We also took alot of pictures of the landscaping in this area. The koi ponds and building architecture were beautiful. Ginger bought a small, wooden buddha in one of the shops, while a very old Chinese man explained the reason that ancient Chinese coins had holes in them. In case you were wondering, it was so they could feed a fabric belt through the holes, and tie the coins around their waist to avoid them clanging together and being a bother when the person ran or rode a bike. Also, it kept people from hearing how much money you had at any one given time. One thing both of us noticed throughout Epcot was that the shops had native country men and women working in them that were always wanting to share knowledge about their land.

Onto Germany, Italy, and America. Of course, we had to watch the American Adventure (8/10) and hear the FABULOUS Liberty Singers. Yes, it gives you chills all over your body; Yes, you will probably tear up; and yes, it makes you damn proud to be an American. Don't miss the singers or the presentation. Proceeded onto Japan where Ginger bought a bonsai starter kit. She had a bonsai when she was younger and wanted to try again. For $12, we both thought it was a great deal. In typical "Japanese capitalism", their shop had some of the best shopping in Epcot. There were many friendly salespeople ready to assist you, the store was immaculate, and you were greeted with a table of oysters where you could "discover" a pearl for a mere $10. I had to stand there and smile thinking of all the people that actually wonder why Japan has grown into such a prosperous and strong nation. We then went to France and Morocco, missing Impressions de France because we were running short of time. I got the Beasts autograph at the International Gateway, which I still don't know why it's really even there, but anyway, onto UK. We had to stop for a refreshment at the Rose & Crown, stopping to take a photo of the piano playing woman 'a singin' in the pub.

We were starting to get really hungry and thought we'd make a quick trip through Canada and onto dinner. We watched the O 'Canada film (8/10) and went onto San Angel Inn. I had made priority seating reservations for 7:30 and it was only 6:00....but we were starving, so I went to the hostess hoping to get in early. She told me it would be just a minute and in about 5 seconds, she called my name. We all had a good laugh over how that minute went by so quickly. We shared the queso fundido appetizer ($10) and both had the plato regional ($16) for our main entree. Okay food, but not great. Of course, we're from Texas, where Mexican food is hot & spicy, and really good fixins, so we're pretty picky. We give it 6/10, not necessarily for the food, but for the wonderful atmosphere. The setting was to die for and very relaxing. Our total bill with tip was $54.

Well, thank God for sustenance, because I felt SO much better after our meal. By now, it was 7:30, so we had to decide quickly what we would go see before closing time at 9:00. We walked onto Journey into Imagination (7/10) and then onto Honey I Shrunk the Audience pre-show. Ginger absolutely loved this show and talked about it throughout the entire trip. She would give it a 10/10. It was cute, and you shouldn't miss it if you have the time. We ran to get onto Spaceship Earth. I mean, we had ended our first night on Space Mountain, so why not end the second night with another classic. The ride was great and no, I never heard Walter Cronkite narrate it, so I thought Jeremy Irons was just fine. Ginger is one of those people that can hear a voice and put a name with it immediately, so the minute Irons started talking, she said "it's Scar!". I thought that was pretty funny to not recognize his voice from all his serious Oscar nominated films, but to know it from The Lion King. Anyway, we both loved this ride! We ended up riding it again later in the week, but we thought it was just too cool. We give it 9/10. By now, our dogs were screaming and it was time to go home. This was the only day that my feet really hurt, but Epcot is SSSOOO huge, that I guess that should be expected. We dropped into bed around 11pm.

Cruella De Ville of the Day - The mother that nearly yanked her child's arm out of her shoulder socket simply because she was intrigued by the miniature train set in Germany. Needless to say, everyone within earshot of her screaming gave her a scathing look. What more can I say?

Rafiki of the Day - Frank, our bus driver from ASM to Epcot. He was the only bus driver the entire trip that said anything other than "move to the back of the bus, blah, blah.." He was a walking (or should I say driving) encyclopedia of worthless information about WDW. For example, WDW uses and serves approximately 32 million pounds of potatoes a year and if you lined up all the catsup packages that have been used from WDW opening to the present, it would stretch from Orlando to Minneapolis. At least it made the bus trip interesting.

Total spent for the day - $120

Pennies collected - 31 (and 2 qtrs.)

Day 4, March 19

We decided to go back to MK and catch everything we had missed on Monday. A friend in Austin told us we would spend 2 days at MK and we laughed at her. Well, the last laugh's on us, because here we are, going back. I know you won't believe it, but we got up at 8 and got to the park by 10:30. I went on a mad penny press search and hit almost every store on Main Street on my quest. Ginger had decided to bring the "serious shooting" Pentax camera today. By the way, we had shot almost 6 rolls of film in only 3 days. I was astounded at how fast film was going, but Ginger is a semi-pro photographer and I'm a serious amateur photographer, so I really shouldn't have been surprised. I was shuddering at the thought of how we were going to pay for the film developing, but this was a special trip, so I tried to quit thinking about that aspect. Anyway, the first ride we went on was Splash Mtn. (9/10). I could tell Ginger was getting a little nervous, but not like the "Space Mountain nervous" she was before. Of course, she loved it, and in the traditional WDW fashion, we bought one of those overpriced, blurred pictures for $10. As a sidenote, we really enjoyed the little chipmunk houses and their conversations in the queue area. We then went onto Big Thunder Mountain RR. It was just like I remembered it at Disneyland....jerky as h***, but fun (9/10). Ginger liked it which I thought was a good step towards talking her into riding the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags in Dallas. It's one of those roller coasters that even looks big from the plane, so you can imagine. I'm one of those people that wants to ride that crazy Superman ride where you go straight up at 100mph and then drops you at the same rate of speed backwards. . Call me masochistic, but I love the thrill of "losing your stomach ". That's kinda sick, huh?

I then bought a MK passport which I didn't even know existed. They were only $5, and I got them stamped at every country. (Another mission along with the penny press quest.) We went over to Tom Sawyers Island and ate at Aunt Pollys. I got a kids meal, which is a pb&j, and Ginger got a ham and swiss. Well, $12 later, we were content and went on our way. We went onto Adventureland for my passport stamp and got across the street just before they roped off the area for the Remember the Magic parade. Walked in Hall of Presidents (7/10). It was so similar to AA in its story, but the animatronics were great. I clapped loudly for both Adams and the Polk president because I'm distantly related to all three....and quite proud of their accomplishments while in office. I got my passport stamped again and we went onto the Haunted Mansion (8/10). Even during the parade, the line was 20 minutes, so heed that warning. It wasn't what I expected (what did I expect?), but we both thought it was a good time and very imaginative. Onto Fantasyland, where I made Ginger ride It's a Small World (7/10). I have loved that ride since DL, and even Ginger thought it was pretty neat. I mean, it is simple, it is "hokey". and the song is nerve wracking....but c'mon, it's cute. We had a little boy in the front of our boat, and he was mesmerized...he couldn't turn his head fast enough to see everything. It's seeing that type of reaction from a child that makes you appreciate rides like this one...it was a really sweet scene.

We then went to Peter Pans Flight (7/10). Cool ride!!! We both loved the feeling of "flying" over London. Then we hit the carousal where Ginger unloaded a barrage of photos on the intricacies of the horses and their faces.(5/10). We watched Merlin do his thing with the 'Sword and the Stone.' Onto Toontown for my passport stamp and then to Tomorrowland for the same thing. While walking through, we noticed the line for Alien was only 10 minutes, so we decided it was now or never. We were both really disappointed. All the hype about this ride being the end all made us real eager to experience it. It was okay, but if I had waited in line for the typical 45-60 minutes, I would have looked like the alien. In otherwords, I wouldn't have been a happy woman. I know the above 4 statements are probably going to warrant death threats to my email address, but remember, this is only an opinion. By now, we decided to go back to the hotel and rest. We returned back to the Mk around 8:00 just as Spectromagic was starting. Awesome parade!! (10/10). Don't miss it. The lights were phenomenal and I wanted it to go on forever. Ginger snapped another 100 pics and we followed the parade all the way up to the castle.

We went onto Planet Hollywood for dinner. Spent $10 on a commentorative glass, $4 on a shot glass (I collect them), and $18 for a shirt. We hadn't even eaten and we were already out $32. Once inside, it was loud, loud, loud....did I mention crazy also??? Maybe it was because we had been at the loud & crazy parks all day, but I wouldn't call this a relaxing experience. It was ok food for the prices, but nothing to write home about. Ginger had the Medallion Steak sandwich and I had fajitas. Total bill was $45 and worth about half of that. We did sit right next to Ben Savage and Danielle Fishburn, the two stars of "Boy Meets World." They were just 2 normal teenagers, and it was funny to see everyone that worked there (along with their Disney bodyguards) kiss their rear the entire time. I mean, they're just kids, and people were falling all over themselves trying to please them. And we wonder why child stars have a unrealistic view of life?!?! We had originally planned to party at Pleasure Island that night, but we were just too beat. I have read trip reports on how people go to the parks all day and then party until 2am at PI. Well, whatever they're taking, I want some. I could barely drag my rear out of the door to hop onto the bus. We crashed around 1am that night.

Scar of the Day - The bartender at Planet Hollywood. He was rude, we were a big inconvenience, and if I never saw him again, that would be too soon. I don't think I need to say more.

Total spent for the Day - $160

Pennies Collected for the Day - 23

Day 5, March 20

Well, by now our feet were screaming and our legs were aching, so we decided to take it fairly easy today (or so we thought). We started out at Typhoon Lagoon and arrived just as they opened at 10am. Neither one of us had been to a water park in quite a few years and we forgot all about those 1000 steps to the top of every slide. Anyway, we rode 3 slides immediately, Keelhaul Falls, Gang Plank Falls, and Mayday Falls , and thought they were alot of fun....but there were 1000 steps up to each one of them (or so it seemed). After those slides, we decided that was enough for us. Being 38 and 36, those slides just weren't what they use to be 20 years ago. We rode around Castaway Creek, which was just a nice, relaxing inner tube ride for us ole, lazy folks. Ginger snapped off a roll of film as we bobbed along. The scenery around the "creek area" was so beautiful. The water parks we had been to didn't have the nice scenery that this one had, but of course, this was a Disney production.

We went snorkeling at Sharks Reef and Ginger loved it with a capital L. I hated it with a capital H. I have never been snorkeling and I wasn't prepared for the different way you have to breath when you snorkel.

I was absolutely terrified after I was underwater. I immediately yanked off my mask , swam across the reef, and jumped out like one of the sharks had bitten me. I was really upset by the experience which surprised me since I am an excellent swimmer and love the water. However, I have periodic bouts of asthma and the feeling of breathing through the tube reminded me of a terrible asthma attack. I can still feel that feeling as I type this report. Anyway, Ginger liked it so much that she did it again as I took pictures. She's now serious about more snorkeling and possible scuba diving trips. (I'll be the one sitting on the beach taking pictures.)

We then did some "surfing" in the wave pool, and just hung out in the sun for 2 hours. One note about the wave pool...it's quite a scary sight to see 100 or more people, screaming at the top of their lungs, surging towards you on the top of this really big wave. So be warned that you might just get clobbered really good at the end of the wave.....by a really big man or woman....right in the nose. 'Nuff said. We left the park at 2pm so we could make it through Future World tonight at Epcot. It's a good thing that we left when we did, because we were already burned in just that short amount of time. We are both sun worshippers and hang out at the lake all summer in Austin, but the Florida sun was more than we were even use to. No wonder people walk around the parks looking like overbaked lobsters. We had actually laughed at some of them....once again, we didn't have the last laugh.

Anyway, we got to Epcot around 4pm. The minute we got off the bus, it started raining, so we bought those yellow ponchos you read all about in trip reports. They were only $5, and a good investment because it rained all night. (The only time it rained the entire trip) We rode Spaceship Earth again because Ginger really liked it and went into the Living Seas (10/10). What a fabulous place!! We could have spent hours in there watching the dolphins, stingrays, sharks, etc. It was so peaceful to sit and watch these magnificent creatures just glide through the water. There were also quite a few divers in the tank and Ginger was getting jealous. She decided that if they offer diving at the Disney Institute, she wants to take classes there next trip.

After about an hour, we went over to The Land. We went on the ride through the greenhouse and gave it 10/10. We loved this ride and were really disappointed that we hadn't arranged to take the Behind the Scenes tour of the greenhouse. The tour is definetely something we will do on our next visit! If you have any interest whatsoever in growing vegeatbles or other plants, this is a 'must do' ride. We were so fascinated to see plants hanging on racks with their exposed roots growing in the air (aeroponics), and the sizes of some of the vegetables (eggplants that probably weighed 5-7 lbs.). I really can't say enough for this ride. After that, we decided to grab some potato skins at the Food Fair. They were only $3.75 and we could have easily split an order. We skipped Circle of Life and Food Rocks because of time constraints. We then walked onto Horizons (10/10). If the rumors are true about them closing this ride, that would be a HUGE mistake. We loved it, even though it was slightly outdated. If we hadn't been running short on time, I'm sure we would have ridden this ride over and over again.

We then went to Wonders of Life and played with alot of the games in the lobby area before we went onto Body Wars. Rode Body Wars (7/10), and yes it was bumpy, but not as bad as people had described it. It also wasn't as good as people has described and neither one of us was terribly impressed. I did love Tim Matheson as the Captain of the "ship." He has always been one of my favs since Animal House. By now it was 8:15 and I knew we had to really run to see Universe of Energy. Unfortunately, by now we had to choose between Ellens UofE or Illuminations. What a bummer to have to choose between 2 great events, but we opted for Ellens since we had heard it was so good. We give it 9/10 and were glad we chose the ride. Ellen was exceptionally funny and the animatronics were great. I do question the guy that wrote in a report that he thought the animatronic Ellen was better looking than the real Ellen...kinda strange to think a machine is better looking than the person..wouldn't you say??? By the time we got out of there, it was 9:15, so once more, like cattle, we headed to the buses. We had made 10pm reservations for the Flying Fish, but we were still full on the $4 potato skins, so we decided to save the $50 it would have cost to eat and just go back to the hotel. We watched the Disney channel for awhile and dropped off around 1am.

Village Idiot of the Day - The Yankee at the Typhoon Lagoon lockers. First off, he thought you left your key in the locker once you opened it since he couldn't "pull the key out." Of course, you do have to turn it a little to the left, but it just happened to pop right out when I tried it. Secondly, he insisted you had to put a quarter in every time you wanted to open the locker, even though he stood there with a key in his hand. Good Lord, don't they have lockers in the NE USA????

Scar of the Day - The man at Epcot that decided the best way to get his ~3 yr. old daughter to sit down in the stroller was to grab her arm and jerk her down into the seat. Of course, she started crying and wanted out, so of course, he just did it again - this time with a good ole slap on the arm to accompany the jerk. Great parents are in such abundance at WDW.

Total spent for the day - $65

Pennies collected - 6

Day 6, March 21

Today was MGM day and we got to the park around 10am. It had rained all night and now the sun was blaring down on us. The humidity was about 150%, the sun was bright, and the temperature around 85 degrees. Put all that together with the smallest park and the tremendous crowd....guess what you get??? Really short fuses. We saw more angry people today than we had the entire 5 days before. We saw 2 complete strangers, (adults may I add), trading insults and calling each other names over photos at the 'Singin in the Rain' umbrella. Throughout the park, kids were crying, people were bumping into each other, and by now, we were thankful that today was our last park day.

Upon entering the park, I immediately started on my penny press search to find quite a few down Hollywood Blvd. We ran into Constance Payne and Ruby Valentine, screen siren, and they amused us for awhile. We went to catch the showing of Indiana Jones (8/10) and only waited about 10 minutes in line. We then walked onto Monster Sound Show (5/10) and strated to line up for the Toy Story parade (8/10). We snacked on a strawberry funnel cake and waited for the parade to start. I didn't think we were going to make it through the parade without getting into a fist fight with someone. It totally amazes me how utterly rude some people can be. We had waited 45 minutes for a good spot and people had the gall to actually come stand right in front of you as they start pushing backwards so they could be behind the "magical parade line"(masking tape). We ended up having words with more than 1 person. We had paid the same price and anyone else to see this parade and we had been fighting the WDW crowds for 6 days - so we weren't the ones to try to step on that day. Anyway, the parade was good and went onto Star Tours (9/10). We had a wait of around 15 minutes and the ride was similar to Body Wars, but alot better to us. Maybe it had something to do with the movie, but I spent most of the Body Wars ride just trying to figure out where in the h*** we were in the human body. We then went onto the Backlot Tour (7/10). We probably had one of the longest waits here for a ride, around 20 minutes. It was okay, but both of us were kinda disappointed. I don't know what we expexted, but we thought we'd see more sets we recognized. Catastrophe Canyon was pretty cool though and being typical Disney, the ride drops you right into a gift shop. I bought an Elvis Presley magnet and a replica of his drivers license. I love him, but I bought the license because it was about the cheesiest thing I had ever seen. I mean, c'mon, a drivers license??? Of course, I heard that nothing's tackier than the street in front of Graceland, so I guess I really haven't seen cheesy. Anyway, we then went onto the Great Movie Ride (8/10) and rode on the ganster side. Real interesting and very entertaining. We were really worn out by this day, and I think we were in slow motion, because we didn't seem to get through as many shows as we had wanted. To compound the problem, I had thought that the park closed at 9 instead of 8, so we had to rush to hit Tower of Terror. I was NOT leaving the park without riding this ride. We waited about 20 minutes, which was 20 minutes too long for Ginger. By the time we got to the actual elevator, she had called me everything but a white woman for "making her ride this ride." I LOVED IT!!!! (10/10). No doubt, one of the best thriller rides I have ever been on. We were dropped not once, not twice, but 2 1/2 time!!!! The ride was way to short for me. Ginger now thinks it was great, but she was shaking so much after she got off that she couldn't sign her name to the travelers check to buy the photo. She was shaky for hours after the ride and I just laughed at her. A month later, she still claims it was the most terrifying thing she had ever experienced. Don't miss this ride if you're the thriller type.

We watched Sorcery in the Sky fireworks as we were leaving the park. We had reservations at O'hanas at 9pm, so we hit the Poly bus for the ride. The Poly resort was absolutely beautiful and we snapped quite a few pics in the lobby. The atmosphere just beckoned you to relax and hang out. I got a shot glass in the gift shop and we went into O'Hanas. I can't tell you how disappointed I was in this restaurant. The one good thing was that we did hit it just in time to see the MK fireworks, and that was neat. They dimmed the lights and piped in the music and we had great seats for the festivities. However, it started going downhill when they started to serve us after the fireworks with this long story about how the meat was marinated for 48 hours, blah, blah. Well, the meat might be marinated, but it was all marinated in the same sauce because there was no difference in the taste of the turkey vs. the sirloin vs. the chicken. All the meat was tuff and only semi-warm. As a topper, our host had told us all about the great desserts so we ordered one each and ended up paying $4 each for them. They weren't the least bit good, and I had assumed that they were included in the price of the "all you can eat" buffet. I was furious about the fact that they didn't make us aware of the extra charge. I really felt that was true deception on our waiter's part and I let him know it with the tip. Our bill ended up being $54 and it was the worst $54 I spent at WDW. I wouldn't recommend this restaurant to my worst enemy. I think I'm going to pen them a letter right after the American Airlines letter. I should be in a roaring mood by then. Enough said about that. We went back to the hotel and dropped off around midnight.

Scar of the Day - The man at Indiana Jones whose ~8 yr. old son kept referring to the show as 'King Kong.' Well, the parent got all bent out of shape about it and started yelling at him "IT'S NOT KING KONG - IT'S INDIANA JONES!!! SAY IT, SAY IT - I WANT TO HEAR YOU SAY IT!!!!! Well, by now the kid is in tears, and it doesn't really matter what show it was - he had ruined it for the child.

Ursula's Tour Group from Hell - Forget the Tourismo...they were very polite. Forget all the bad things you read about teenagers in the paper. We ran into the most polite, well behaved kids we had ever encountered. But, BEWARE THE GERMANS!!! They were the most inconsiderate group of people we encountered in any park, especially MGM. Obviously, rules of good behavior are reserved for us stupid Americans, because the Germans follow no rules. They would cut in front of you in line, bump into you so hard that you would spill your drink all over yourself, and never once apologize. I hate to catagorize one group of people, but they deserve this slam because they were rude cows the entire week.

Pennies colllected for the Day - 31

Total spent for the Day - $120

Day 7, March 22

Well, I wondered how we would feel about this day getting here and to be honest, we're not upset at all. We have had the best vacation we have ever had, but our feet and legs are screaming and we're exhausted. I don't possibly see how anyone visits the parks for their first time in less than 7 days. It seemed like we were on the run the entire time and we still didn't even darken the doors of River Country, Blizzard Beach, or Pleasure Island. We also missed about half the shows at MGM because of time problems. Anyway, we went to Village Marketplace to do some souvenier shopping. I saved our 'big' shopping trip for VM since I get a 10% discount there because I 'm a MKC card holder. We bought 3 WDW 25th aniversary coins for only $5 a piece. Being a football card collector, I know that this was a real steal and can only guess how much these will be worth in another 25 years. We also got a Rainforest t-shirt and shot glass along with Donald Duck shorts (that Ginger rarely takes off), a key chain, various magnets, a goofy mug for our dog babysitter, a 25th aniversary pictorial book, and Mickey ears for Ale. I spent around $50 with my discount and I felt that was a great deal. The World of Disney store at VM is unbelievable. It has 12 huge rooms, all with different themes. You could really blow some cash in there if you weren't careful, so beware if you're on a budget.

We then went back to the hotel and decided to lay out by the pool, swim, and just relax until the Mears shuttle arrived at 3pm to take us to the airport. We loved ending our vacation like that - just resting and relaxing. We both got a great burn/tan combo for that 'Florida' look in that short 2 hour timespan. We caught the plane on time and of course, by the time we got to Austin, we were running 30 minutes late...but hey, what else would you expect from American? Our ride was waiting on us and we all went home, ordered a pizza, and dropped into bed around midnight.

Total spent that Day - $85

Overall Thoughts and Comments about the Trip

* If you have some grand idea that taking your pre-school child to WDW will be magical, you're nuts. I love children, but I was so sick of strollers ramming me in the ankles, crying kids, and abusive parents that I wanted to scream. Your 3 year old will NOT remember this trip to WDW! They need to be older to enjoy the trip themselves, and after seeing parents on the verge of insanity, I think it goes double for them. My theory, after 7 days at WDW, is that if your child can't walk on his/her own power the entire day, you will probably have a miserable experience. Crowded areas get even more crowded with 3 ft of stroller in front of you along with the other 1000 strollers in the park. As a extra warning, remember, you have to leave the stoller outside almost every ride and is accessible to everyone, so trust is important when parking that expensive stroller. I know many people will be offended by my opinions in the above paragraph; and I'm sure many people, like Brian Bennett, wholeheartedly disagree with me on this aspect of WDW. Please remember, this is only my opinion.
* The only people that would surpass the people in "nutsville" that tote their pre-schoolers to WDW, would be the people that actually go to WDW in the summer. Have they lost their ever-loving minds?? We went in March and it was hot, humid, and fairly crowded. I can't imagine a realxing day in the parks in July. It would be absolutely miserable with double the crowd and double the heat. I know "they" would never let this fact slip out, but I would bet money that someone has pulled out a gun in an altered state of mind after a long, July day in the park and has threatened to blow Mickey Mouse away. Seriously, it seemed crowded and especially humid, enough so that we are planning the next trip for October to avoid the above mentioned evils.
* Unfortunately, no matter where we ate at the parks, the food was overpriced and far from good. To be quite blunt, the food was terrible and the resort restaurants were equally as bad. I was extremely disappointed, considering you have to eat somewhere, sometime, in the park, and the choices stink. I don't know how they can fix this situation, but I do know that on our next trip, I will not plan any meals in the parks. The hotdog at Lumieres was enough to ruin the entire trip.
* For the money, I don't know how you can beat the All Star Resorts. They have all the advantages of being on WDW property without putting you in the poorhouse. We were on the dreaded second floor and the noise never bothered us. Yes, the turbo toilets were loud, but never so bad as to jolt you out of bed. We averaged 10 hrs. a day in our room, most of that asleep. Because of that simple fact, I can't justify spending $250 a night for a pillow and bed. The pools were big, the rooms were more than adequate, our maid was great, and the staff was always polite and helpful.
* Regarding my quest for pennies, I ended up spending around $60 and I still didn't get all of them...but I came real close. Of course, now I have a ton of smashed pennies in a cup and I don't know what to do with them, but I guess I'll figure something out. As for enjoying the free entertainment, like the dancing fountains, etc., it was a good idea, but as I said, we almost ran through every park, so some of the attractions just went by us in a blur. The Hidden Mickey search seemed almost impossible. I mean, who had time to make a Mickey head out of some wrought iron railing?? Maybe if you lived in Orlando and went every weekend, but for a first time experience, it was almost too much to do everything and hunt for Mickeys at the same time. We only found one and that was in the queue area at Splash Mountain.
* We really did have good intentions of getting up early everyday and taking advantage of early entry. If you can do it, I think it would be a real benefit to get more done in a day. As a sidenote, if you can do it after being at the parks 13 hours the day before, bless your heart, and again, I want some of what you're taking. I also studied indepth on the priority seating system and made reservations at 4 different restaurants 60 days prior to arriving. We only ate at 2 of them, and I really don't think I needed to make them that early in advance. I know I shouldn't recommend this, but I'm not going to make any advance reservations next trip and we're just going to "wing it" when we get there. What you feel like now, and what you want to eat right now ,could be (and probably will be) totally different once you're there. We were too tired, or we were hungry earlier or later than the reservations, that it really didn't work out to our advantage. One thing we will do on the next trip is take advantage of the different tours offered by WDW. I know now that we will want to take the Greenhouse Tour, the Wilderness Lodge tour (which is FREE!!!), and one of the Behind the Scenes tour of the MK.
* In my opinion, and my opinion only, the MK is the best park. We spent 2 full days there and still didn't see all we wanted to see. We also spent 2 days at Epcot and had to rush through much of it. We only spent 1 day at MGM and we missed many shows. OK, OK, what's the point?? Either get up early and get your running shoes on, or plan on really spending 8 days in the 3 main parks (for that first time visit.). I know some people are reading this that did a park a day and laughing at this ridiculous recommendation, but I really don't see how they did it. Our next trip will be 5 days and we are simply going to just try to see what we missed the first time around...consider it "First trip...Part 2." I didn't follow any touring plans in any book. I did remember the basic philosophy that lines will be shorter at park opening, during the parades, and right before the park closes. We took advantage of this (well, at least the parade and park closing bit) and walked on many rides. Really and truly, the lines weren't that bad and the crowds were never too intense, except at MGM.
* We spent a total of $1725 on the trip: $325 for the plane, $570 for the hotel, and $830 for food and spending money. This was a bargain compared to most trips. I had read horror stories about how it would be impossible to spend less than $2000 once we got there, so we were really careful with the money. However, we didn't lack for anything and we did the trip for under $1000 each, so it is possible. No, we didn't eat alot of meals, nor did we go to alot of fancy restaurants, but we had a spectacular time and still came home with $65 in our pockets. For the next trip we want to take, we are going to go for 5 days in October. I am going to go another route on this trip and have booked the stay at the ASM with the Classic Plan and the Food & Fun plan. The total for the 4 nights and the two plans will be $1147 for two people. I'm going to try this route and see if it's better to have everything prepaid and only have to worry about souvenier money. Plane fares have gone up, so between the plans, the air fare, and the spending money, we'll probably spend about the same for this trip as we did the last. We're going to try something real different and fly in late Tues. night (our trip is really from Wed. to Mon.) and stay at the Days Inn by the airport. Rooms are pretty cheap and they run a free shuttle from the airport to the hotel, so we can get to the hotel free and get some sleep. Then, real early the next morning, we're going to take the free shuttle back to the airport and take Mears to the ASM. Why are we going to this trouble? First, with the Classic plan, you are paying for a length of stay pass starting at 12:01am on the day you arrive. With our last experience, we didn't get to our room til 5:30pm, so there's one day shot already. We decided it was worth the extra $36 for a room and get to enjoy the full 5 days of the LOS pass. Secondly, a round trip Mears pass is cheaper than a 1 way cab ride, so we're taking advantage of both the free hotel shuttle and Mears good rates to get us to the WDW property.
* The WDW transportation system was nothing short of magnificent. We had that one long wait at MK upon returning at park closing, but besides that, the buses were wonderful. They ran frequently, they were well marked and easy to find, and they got you to the parks in probably half the time it would take you if you drove your personal vehicle. I don't know how they possibly keep track of where to go and who to pick up, but it was absolutely spectacular how the WDW transportation system runs like a well-oiled machine.
* As a last note, the one thing we both noticed with the people at WDW was that they did not know what the word "no" meant. We never heard that word come out of their mouths. If I asked for directions somewhere and that person didn't know, they found someone who did. I once requested towels for pool use at the front desk at the ASM and you could tell by the look on her face that she had never been asked that question. She wandered off and within 1 minute, she was handing me 2 towels. I asked for extra sacks at many shops and was always asked how many, and handed that amount all the while with a smile on their face. It really is a remarkable group of people that work at WDW and I appluad them. Personally, I would get really sick of tourists who are basically clueless, but they seem to honestly enjoy their jobs. I know 2 people here in Austin that use to work at WDW, and they both have nothing but praise for the experience, so they must have some magic left for their employees as well as the guests.
* I still watch the WDW 25th Aniversary tape when I'm home. I still check out the webpages to see if Deb has any updates. I still read trip reports on Brian's page. I cried at the WDW Easter special. I'm already obsessing about the next trip. WDW has some type of magic that is beyond description. I simply can't describe it, but you have no worries, no fears, and no problems when you are there. Everyone is equal, whether you are black, white, woman, man, fat, thin, or whatever. The whole property has the absolute best feeling one could hope for and ever experience. If I won the lottery, I would move into Celebration, just so I could experience the WDW feeling everyday. It's just unreal, and I would encourage everyone to go and "rememebr the magic."

Only 168 days to go.....but whose counting???

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