Trip Reports

Okay, I'm going to give this trip report stuff a try. Please bear in mind that this is my first attempt - and we are really not very good vacationers. I'm sure I'll be in the running for that "most boring trip report of the year" award, but I'm going to gather up all my nerve and give it a try anyway.

When: Nov. 12-19, 1999 Where: Dixie Landings Resort Why: our second wedding anniversary (but who needs an excuse?) How: Delta Express, Tiffany Towncar Who: 2 very shy adults, see below.

Okay, a brief introduction/cast of characters:

Me, Kitty (TDC Bashful): a very bashful thirty-something Disney-addict. I'm a secretary/bookkeeper/office-type person for a small window and door company in Columbus, Ohio.

My husband, Rocky: an even more bashful forty-something NASCAR-addict who sweetly tolerates his wife's Disney obsession. (Anything that keeps me away from his remote control is a good thing!) He works in the warehouse at the same small window & door company.

We are happily married hermits - we share a tiny little crooked house in the country with our two cats. Except for our annual treks to the World, we hardly ever leave home unless we have to. (Unfortunately, work is one of those "have to's".

Disney History:

This was trip number 3 for us, to celebrate our second wedding anniversary. Our first introduction to WDW was for our honeymoon, then again for our first anniversary. I have several Disneyland trips under my belt from my previous life in California, but Rocky's only Disney experience was those Sunday nights in front of the TV as a kid.

Some notes before I start:

To all those people with wonderful trip-planning websites, and to all those RADPers who have given advice - a big thank you! There's no question that you all have improved our vacation. Also, an apology to all those with menus on your sites. Honest, I wanted to help, but we didn't do much in the way of sit-down meals, and I ended up with no menus. However, I do have some extra soaps and shampoos - Dotti, is the PO Box address on Deb's site still accurate?

Okay, now on with the show. Please be forewarned - this turned out a lot wordier than I anticipated. If you don't like the long, detailed reports, this one won't be for you.

Day 1 - Friday Nov. 12

After two trips of leaving on the earliest flight possible, and returning on the latest flight possible, we finally learned our lesson. We're too old to push ourselves like that, and it doesn't improve the trip any. This time, we took a flight out of Columbus at 12:20 p.m. After working our behinds off all week at work, it was a good decision. (Our company doesn't much like two people taking vacations at the same time, but they sort of have to bend the rules for us.)

After a tearful good-bye to our two cats, Charm and Buddy, we headed out on the road around 9:30 am. Uneventful trip to the airport, parked the truck at one of those long-term parking places, took shuttle to airport, checked our bags, and had plenty of time to grab a small bite to eat at the airport Wendy's. Checked out the airport gift shops. I wanted to find some sort of small Columbus souvenir to give to any RADPers I might meet there, but who am I kidding. I'm never going to get the courage to approach anyone (and really, this stuff was all junk, anyway).

While waiting for the plane, I noticed something really odd - there were almost no kids, and no Disney clothes. Usually, you can tell by the T-shirts and hats that everyone is headed for Walt Disney World, but not so on this flight. I only counted 3 kids total on this full flight, and just one Disney T-shirt - odd.

Flight was uneventful, and at last we were in Orlando. Every year it seems like I need a vacation even more. I couldn't help thinking about another trip report I read recently that all these people leaving were at the end of their vacation, and ours was just starting! (and of course Rocky responded the same way as her significant other - in a week that will be us.)

I couldn't help but get excited when we got on the little subway to baggage claim - gotta love that voice! Mohammed with Tiffany Towncar was waiting for us. Last year he told us that he remembers all his customers, even if they only visit once a year. Rocky didn't believe him, but I guess it's true! We're really sold on this - for just a few dollars more than Mears, they are there waiting for you, help you with luggage, and take you straight to the resort. We rented a car the first year, and it remained parked at the resort the entire trip. We'd rather take our time and enjoy Disney transportation than have to fight traffic, parking, and confusing road signs.

Arrived at Dixie Landings a little after 3 p.m. - perfect timing, since that 's check-in time. Our room was ready, and they got most of my requests down. I had sent a very polite, friendly fax a few days earlier saying that we'd love a non-smoking room in Alligator Bayou, river-view (we'd paid for a water view - all that was available with MKC discount), close to food court - and a king-size bed would be great, too. Well, we didn't get the king-size bed, but now that I'm back, I see this thread about a change in policy - must pay extra up-front. Oh well, our own bed is even smaller than their double beds anyway. We ended up in Alligator Bayou, Building 16, upstairs, facing a quiet pool. There aren't very many river views in Alligator Bayou, are there? I was very happy with the room - I love DxL, and we were pretty close to the food court.

Well, we cleaned up and headed for the Magic Kingdom - always our first park. This year we splurged for regular AP's - just a tad bit more than length of stay passes, and we're hoping to maybe sneak in a long weekend trip in the spring. We exchanged our vouchers and had our first experience with the biometrics scanners. I guess we were lucky - it went smoothly, never had a problem the whole week.

The park was crowded, but we had expected that. We took a ride on the WDW Railroad - a nice way to start the trip. I think we actually saw Bruce, but he must've been heading out - I was too bashful to shout out and try and catch him. Sorry Zazu, maybe next time.

We strolled a bit around the park, but didn't feel like tackling the crowds, so we decided to see if Epcot was any better. We took the monorail over and got our first look at the Mickey wand thing over Spaceship Earth. I love it! It's so much better than the "cakestle", though I must confess that I didn't mind that so much, either. However, the Leave a Legacy thing is kinda weird. Rocky really, really didn't like it. I guess it didn't bother me so much, but I didn't feel the need to spend the $38.00 on it, either.

Hunger had struck, so we headed to the Sunshine Season Food Fair. Rocky had a BBQ sandwich and I tried the vegetarian lasagna. (Rocky's a meat and potatoes kind of guy, and I'm just the potatoes - a vegetarian.) We pronounced both meals just "okay".

Tummy's full, we decided to do some early shopping, and took a look at the new Mouse Gear. It's pretty neat - I see what they mean about all the Hidden Mickeys. However, it was major crowded, and we're both pretty "crowd-phobic". We were pretty tired anyway, so we did Spaceship Earth (no wait), and called it a day. I just love that ride - one of those I could do over and over and not get tired of.

Day 2 - Saturday Nov. 13

Okay, where was I. Mickey Mouse called at 6:25, but I was already awake - eager, I guess, to get vacationing! (This is really neither here nor there, but I recently gave up coffee - not an easy thing - but have since found that my mornings are a lot easier.)

We took our time getting ready, and were at the bus depot shortly before eight. We decided to give Disney MGM Studios a try. We had to wait until 8:30 to get in. It looked like a good-sized crowd already, but I knew it was tough to judge before everything was open and everyone spread out.

We decided to try a compromise: try and follow Sehlinger's Unofficial Guide suggestions without being so militant. Actually, I have to say that it worked beautifully. We didn't see any point in standing in front of a rope for 30 minutes, so instead, we checked out some shops, and got a couple of danishes and orange juice from Starring Rolls. I love to watch the sparrows that hang out there. (Yeah, I'm easy to please.)

Once the rope dropped, we made our way down Sunset Blvd. and headed for the Rock 'n' Roller coaster. This early in the morning there was like a 5-minute wait. We really liked this one - I just loved it, all of the theming as well as the ride itself. Before Disney took over my life, music was my obsession. This ride was about the coolest thing I could've imagined - just can't rave enough! The only thing I didn't like was the picture they took - but honestly, that might've been "us", not the photo's fault.

Next was Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. There was maybe a 10 or 15-minute wait, but it went quickly. I'm a big Twilight Zone fan anyway, so I really like this one. The drop sequence is much wilder than before - you really don't know what to expect - leaves you breathless. Once again, we passed up on the photo - this one, I have to say, isn't just us. They just don't catch the "terror" on people's faces (but I suppose it would be tough to take the picture when you're dropping).

Next on the list, Star Tours. I just think this ride is so cute! It's not Rocky's favorite, but he's sweet and goes along for it. While waiting in line, I noticed a young boy in a wheelchair who had been waiting until they could help him onto the ride. He'd been sort of by himself in this roped-off area. Out of nowhere Chewbacca arrives and heads straight for him, gave him a hug, had pictures taken, all that stuff - it was so sweet!

Next, the Great Movie Ride. I love this one! (I have so many favorite rides.) Somehow, we always get the cowboy scene, though - we've never had the gangster one. Guess we'll just have to keep trying. ? Rocky did pronounce this the best "cowboy" we'd had, though. He was very animated, really got into the role.

After that, a soft pretzel caught our eye, so we split one with a coke. Is it me, or are Disney's pretzels just so much bigger than anywhere else? While munching, we noticed a huge statue of Flik (over by the Honey I Shrunk playground). Since we're too shy to go up to the live characters, this seemed like a good photo opportunity.

Next, Muppet Vision 3D (4D? Didn't we just have a discussion about this recently? Oh wait, let me check - yep, the guide map says 3D, crossed out, with 4D beside it.) I just love this one. Rocky says it isn't nearly as good as the Honey I Shrunk one. He never really watched the Muppet Show, though - I think he missed something here. Of course my favorite character, Beaker, has much too small a role.

By this time, crowds were definitely picking up, but we felt pretty happy. It was approaching noon, and we'd already seen all the most important stuff. (yeah, yeah, we left a lot out, but we'd seen what most mattered to us.)

We headed back to DxL and had lunch at Colonel's Cotton Mill (food court). We both got taco salads, mine minus the meat. These things are huge! I really wish I could get Rocky to give up meat so we could split more meals! We made it back to the room in time for the season's last Busch Race (stock cars). I had a nice nap. (Sorry, but when I'm tired, those cars going round and round just put me right out.)

We finally got moving again, but were really undecided about what to do. Being Saturday night, we figured that everything would be crowded. I know, what are crowd-phobic people doing at WDW anyway? What can I say - Disney's worth facing our fear (to a point). We decided to tackle Epcot.

We headed for World Showcase this time, just strolling and enjoying the sights. We stopped in Italy to watch this outrageous comedian. I'm sure a description won't do this one justice, but I'll try. He didn't talk much, kind of reminded me of that Mr. Bean guy. He had a fold-up chair and a carpetbag. He took out a roll of tape and very carefully laid out strips on the cement in sort of a large square, and then proceeded to set up house. He set out his chair, a welcome mat, etc. Pulled out a picture frame, asked a nice elderly woman to hold it up (around her face), and called it "mama". Had some other guy hold up a window, and someone else held a rack for his hat. Then he did some juggling with silver cups. He got a good-sized crowd really "oohing and aahing" and getting into it. Okay, yup, you just can't describe this one, but it was funny!

We stopped for a kaki-gori, trying Honeydew this time, since it seemed to be the RADP favorite. Sorry, we both preferred the strawberry we had last year.

Next, some cous-cous for dinner. Rocky had the Marekesh Combo, and I had the veggie cous-cous from the Food & Wine Festival kiosk. These little servings are just the right size for us.

We continued around, stopping in the UK. Rocky crashed for a while on a bench while I did a little shopping. I bought two beautiful little porcelain boxes in the Magic of Wales shop - Christmas gifts. Ian, from Portsmouth, England, was very helpful and full of wonderful vacation tips.

I joined Rocky on the bench and waited around for the British Invasion. We really enjoyed them last year. It was still a good show this time, but it seemed like the audience wasn't as much fun this time. No one was singing along or getting into it - I think it made it harder for them to get into it. (Of course, I can't talk. As always, we were hanging out at the back of the crowd.) I think it disrupted their show a little, too, when some characters came out to greet people. Suddenly, there was a huge crowd of parents and tots fighting over Tigger. Before they took over, though, the Mad Hatter wandered out and took a seat at our bench. He's outrageous - what a wonderful job he does at that voice! He even got Rocky laughing.

On our way out, we decided to try a Beaver Tail. Very similar to the Elephant Ears that Rocky grew up with, but a little lighter - different oil. (We just had the usual cinnamon & sugar one - I'd like to experiment with some of the others some day.)

We checked in at Mouse Gears, bought a Mickey sweatshirt for me, and headed back to DxL. The sweatshirt turned out to be a good decision. While the days were very nice, the early mornings and evenings were a bit cool this year. I think it was a bit more comfortable than last year though - it was actually a bit too warm last November.

Day 3 - Sunday Nov. 14

Okay, lets see. A little slower start this morning. We went to the food court for breakfast - cereal, toast and orange juice (Frosted Flakes, since it is vacation and all).

We arrived at Epcot about 8:45, and headed straight for Test Track. After 2-1/2 years of anticipation, would we finally get to ride this? Yes! We were surprised to see it open even before 9:00 am. No wait, went right on. Did we like it? Yes! Was it worth a 2-1/2 year wait? Well. we liked it, anyway. As Rocky says, it was very Disney. He was a bit more critical than me, noticing where displays weren't "real", but Rocky's happiest when he has something to complain about, anyway. The ride was fun, the photo was horrid, what we expected. LOL

Next, Ellen's Energy Adventure. I really like this one - I think the whole Jeopardy story is cute. Next, Honey I Shrunk the Audience. We only caught about ½ of the preshow. I was disappointed, Rocky was happy. Oh well. I guess I've heard True Colors too many times now, anyway. We both like this attraction. Even though I know they're coming, I still jump every time at the mice. Rocky was happy because he figured out how they do the dog sneeze.

Next, the new Journey Into Your Imagination. I know we're in the minority here, but we didn't much like the original JII, so we thought this was an improvement. It's not a "must see", or worth a long wait, but it was cute. We looked around Imageworks a bit, discovered the first of the "make your own CD" things - decided to wait on that.

Next, the Living Seas. In three trips, this was the first time we had checked out this attraction. Fish just don't do it for Rocky, but he's a pretty good sport about trying anything once. I wouldn't say I didn't like it, but I have to say that the aquariums in San Francisco as a kid spoiled me - this just can't compete. And now that we've heard "the voice", we are also amazed that that isn't Kathleen Turner.

I had an urge to try the Crème Brulee at Fountainview Café, but unfortunately they didn't have any today. They were working on a pumpkin brulee, but that didn't interest me. Oh well - add it to the list of things to come back for.

We headed back to DxL and did lunch at the food court again. It's really not that busy around lunchtime - a nice break from the parks. Pepperoni pizza for Rocky, cheese calzone for me - not bad. Took a piece of German Chocolate cake back to the room so we wouldn't be late for the Winston Cup race. The cake was very rich - never did finish the whole piece.

We cleaned ourselves up a bit and headed back out to the bus depot. Today was our anniversary, so we had splurged on tickets for Cirque du Soleil. We were early, so we walked around the West Side and Pleasure Island a bit. I noticed that a group called Stormbringer was playing at the West End Stage tonight - I used to know a group by that name in high school - you don't suppose. nah, couldn't be.

Downtown was pretty busy - this was the Festival of the Masters thingy. I suppose I might've changed our Cirque plans if I had thought of that, but it really didn't affect the show.

Got into the show around 5:15. I heard all this stuff about being there early; definitely at least 30 minutes early for the preshow, but we never did see the point. The show was officially scheduled for 6:00, and nothing at all happened until at least 5:50. Did we miss something?

It started with a couple of clowns carrying boxes - kinda cute. Rocky wasn 't too happy a camper, though. Being squeezed into the middle of a row in a big theater, waiting 45 minutes to see some clowns wasn't his idea of fun. Luckily, it did get better. I was in awe for most of the show - they do some amazing stuff! I knew this wasn't really Rocky's thing, but even he agreed that some of the stuff was pretty incredible. All in all, a memorable show. Weird, but memorable.

Now, I know it's WDW, and we're on vacation, but after the show, we both agreed that we had to get back to the room for X-Files. Yes, we're kind of hooked - and it was the second episode of a two-parter. We picked up some dinner from the food court and took it back to the room. Molder's still alive, Scully's still confused, things are back to normal.

Day 4 - Monday Nov. 15

This morning we had a bit of a rough start - slight disagreement. I don't remember exactly what about - I think I was just having a bad hair day. Despite the argument, we made it to Epcot by about 8:35. We headed for Test Track again, and again no line. Then we headed for the Land and did the Living with the Land boat ride, no wait.

After that, I remembered this passport thing I'd gotten in the mail, that Magic Delivery thing. We headed for Guest Relations and I had them stamp it. I asked about the special Illuminations viewing thing, but it was already booked. (Yeah, I know - you have to be there first thing. I guess it was really a half-hearted attempt anyway - Rocky has zero interest in anything to do with parades or fireworks.)

We decided we weren't that into Epcot this morning so we headed back to DxL and decided to take the boat to Downtown Disney. Tom was our skipper and he was very talkative. He got us all to identify our hometowns and kept us entertained for the whole ride.

We checked out Disney at Home. I had thought that this place would just thrill me, but I ended up not buying anything. I'd like to do the whole house in Disney, but I couldn't see buying anything I didn't absolutely need anyway.

Wandered a bit more, found ourselves at Studio M. This time I took the time to make my own CD - fun, but there's so much more material I wish they had available. I did try to choose stuff I didn't think I'd be able to get on other collections, so it was still pretty cool.

Next stop, World of Disney, where we proceeded to break the bank. So much for moderation. I've been looking for a nice watch ever since our first trip, and this time I found one. It's just a small, tasteful gold watch: ivory face with a gold Mickey in the center, and small Mickey heads make up the band. I love it. Rocky also found a really nice jacket - tan-colored with green trim, small Mickey on the breast - it really fits him. He didn't want to spend the money - I just grabbed it and added it to the ever-growing pile. Couple of gifts, couple of shirts, keychains, magnets, another CD, a Bashful pin. they like us there. LOL

Well, all that shopping made us hungry, so off we went to Planet Hollywood. It was what we expected - loud and crazy, but fun. Rocky got some sort of club sandwich and I had the sizzling fajitas with portobello mushrooms. Wow, way way too much food - but it was good.

We had kind of thrown off our schedule here - it was a little late for us to take an afternoon break and go back out later, so we just decided to keep going and make it an early night instead. We ended up just getting on the first bus that arrived at the West Side Depot - Boardwalk Resort. We just wandered a bit, and somehow got sucked into the DVC Open House. I think it sounds like a wonderful idea, but Rocky's not so sure. I'm afraid we're pretty lousy customers, though (being anti-social and all). What was supposed to take about an hour only lasted 25 minutes for us. But, we got a nice book and a video for our troubles. Really, with all the info on the Net, the only thing we needed was to see what the rooms really look like. I must admit that I was surprised at how large the studios are. It really is quite a step up from the moderate rooms. If they would only put a washer/dryer and VCR in the studios, they might sell us on it. (No point in us getting anything bigger than a studio. Their one bedrooms are practically bigger than our house!) Rocky wants me to "crunch the numbers" and really show him how we'd come out ahead. One of these days, maybe I'll sit down and figure it all out. Our guide, Chris, was really nice, given our lack of enthusiasm. He wasn't pushy, but I think he was a bit misleading about the financing - definitely said we'd come out *ahead* by financing, instead of paying up front. That doesn't seem to make sense to us.

From there, we walked to Epcot. We checked out the new Millennium Village. I guess it's just not our thing. (I guess it's pretty obvious that we're not much into audience participation.)

On our way out, we caught a bit of Off Kilter. I like them more each time I hear them, but they're still not doing much for Rocky. Unfortunately, the sun was in our eyes, just too uncomfortable, so we headed on. Maybe if I buy the CD and play it enough, it will grow on Rocky. LOL

Continued on to Future World. Wandered a bit around Innoventions, but we were both a bit out of it by now, so we headed back to DxL. We crashed for a while, just vegged in front of the TV. We started to stir again around 8:00. It seemed like a nice, clear night so we decided to take a leisurely stroll along the Sassagoula, down to Port Orleans. We checked out the resort a bit, looked in at the gift shop, had a bite at the food court. We enjoyed the little jaunt, but left feeling glad we were staying at DxL. Sorry Danielle, we just love Dixie. :-)

A bit of TV and we called it a night.

Day 5 - Tuesday Nov. 16

Amazingly, we're still managing to get going at a reasonable hour. We found that it's nice to get to the parks right when they open, but there's no point in being any earlier than that. We pretty much avoided the early entry parks, though. We might've been able to get there in time, but it didn't seem worth the effort. We weren't encountering a lot of long waits anyway, and we knew that after a couple hours the EE park would be the most crowded anyway.

We arrived at MGM pretty close to 8:30, walked right in. Headed for Starring Rolls again - cinnamon swirl for Rocky and a cheese turnover for me. The orange juice makes it nutritious, right? Did a little shopping until rope drop. Once again, we headed straight for the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. I could've done this one quite a few more times, but I'm happy that I caught it twice.

Surprisingly, Rocky opted out of TZTOT - maybe the drop didn't appeal so much after the cinnamon swirl. Instead, he volunteered to go through the Magic of Animation Tour. This is certainly one of my favorite attractions - it's really what it's all about, as far as I'm concerned. Rocky thinks it's all fake. Last time we took the tour, there wasn't a single person working behind those glass walls. He was positive that it was all for show and that no one ever really worked there. (I knew enough to avoid the weekends, but apparently they were all in a meeting that day.) This time, there were a few people. I must admit that most of them didn't appear to be slaving away, but at least it looked like some work might actually get done there. They had some stuff up for a new film, Kingdom of the Sun. It didn't grab me the way the stuff for Tarzan did last year, but maybe it's just that I don't know anything about the story yet.

Well, we had seen what we most wanted to at MGM and we'd spent so little time at MK so far, so we headed straight there. I had heard that Casey's had good hot dogs and Rock was hungry, so we stopped there for a dog and I shared some fries with him. Then, we headed for Pirates of the Caribbean (another one of my favorites, of course). We had some technical difficulties and ended up stuck for a while in the burning village scene. It wasn't so bad - it was a bit chillier today, so we enjoyed the warmth. Rocky made fun of the repeated "please remain seated - the ride will resume any minute" warnings. Where were we going to go? However, after a few minutes of "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirates life for me." he was threatening to jump overboard. It took quite a while to get that song out of our heads. LOL

By this time, I was getting hungry, so I grabbed a veggie egg roll from the Adventureland cart. Since we wanted to come back later for E-Ride night, we decided to head back to DxL for a break.

We rested for a little while, then headed back to MK for E-Ride. We were able to trade our tickets for wristbands with no wait at City Hall. The hot dog and egg roll hadn't been much of a lunch, so we decided to look for dinner. We were surprised to see that Columbia Harbour House actually closes at 5:00, even though the park is officially open until 7:00. Oh well, plan B. We decided on Cosmic Rays for burgers (veggie burger for me). I know this is just the standard veggie burger I can get anywhere, but somehow it tastes better at WDW. :-) We watched a little bit of Sunny Eclipse while we munched, and then it was off to the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. This is the perfect way to digest a meal (or take a break, if you're needing one).

Next stop, Snow White. I wanted to do the new Pooh ride, but there was a line, and we figured we'd have a better chance later. No wait for Snow White (and no Bashful car - what's up with that?).

It was too early for the headliners, since we knew we could do them after 7:00, so Rocky actually agreed to It's a Small World (no wait). I was stunned - thought he'd never do that one again. I kinda like it, of course - fond memories from childhood - though the outside of the one at Disneyland is just so way more cool. Rocky noticed that it wasn't as loud this time (I made him go on it on our first trip). Do they turn down the volume of the music when crowds are low? (The people behind us noticed this, too - her hubby also said it wasn't nearly as annoying with the music turned down.) ;-)

It wasn't quite 7:00, but crowds were already dying down, so we did the Haunted Mansion. This one is my own "must see" every trip. I just absolutely love this attraction! I have an old vinyl record with the entire recording from this, with a story about two teenagers on a "dark and stormy night". The guy is "Ronnie Howard" - pretty cool. Too bad I no longer have a working turntable. :-(

It was almost 7:00 now, and the place was already quiet. This turned out to be the slowest I've ever seen the park, even for an E-Ride night - really empty! We started with Big Thunder Mountain. Rocky pronounced it rather tame.

(This is off topic, but we went to Cedar Point this summer - my first time, and the first time in many, many years for Rock - it's only a couple hours away for us. This was the first time I've really felt "old". We did a couple wooden coasters - wow, have they gotten fast and rough! Then we did the "Magnum" - 200 ft. drop right over the lake. It positively scared the beejeebers out of me. That was it. Once was enough. I'll stick with Disney coasters now, thank you. Can you believe that they are working on a 300 ft. drop for the Millenium coaster?!!! No way.)

Next, Splash Mountain. We both love this one. In fact, the picture of the two of us in our own log, on our honeymoon, is the only picture of us that we agreed to frame and actually have out on display in our house (not that anyone will ever see it - seeing as how we're hermits and all). Anyway, we got wet. We ended up being very glad that we had opted for jeans this evening. We packed up our sweatshirts in my backpack before getting on. This was also a good decision. We shook ourselves dry as best we could, and then had the dry sweatshirts to put on to get warm. Unfortunately, it was too cold to do this one more than once.

(Another "neither here, nor there". I'm the backpack sort. Rock's been trying to convince me that I'd be more comfortable with a fanny pack, but I' d rather have everything I need with me: camera, sweatshirt, refillable mug, aspirin, gum. well, you get the idea. Besides, I carry a big purse with me all the time. Without something on my shoulder, I panic.)

Okay, on to Tomorrowland. First, Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Rocky controlled the spin, and beat the pants off me. Oh well. At least I scored *something* - no need to publicize it here, though. Next, Space Mountain. It was maybe a 5 minute wait - this seemed to be the only slightly busy thing we saw all night. I really like Space Mountain - just my speed.

After this, Rocky convinced me to do Alien Encounter. I really didn't like this the first time. Go ahead, call me chicken, but this attraction is very disturbing. And it's very unDisneylike to fry poor little Skippy. Well, I didn't like it much better the second time, but at least I was a bit more prepared. Have they added more effects? Neither one of us remembers getting so wet the first time.

Tried Buzz Lightyear again. This time we took separate cars. I did much worse. I could swear that some of those laser guns have bad triggers. (Just humor me and say "yes", okay?)

Space Mountain one more time, then Country Bear Jamboree. I know it's hardly worth saving for E-Ride, but we'd never seen it before. It's about what we expected - cute, but not a "must see".

We were starting to wear down, so one more trip on Big Thunder, and we headed out. It had been a while since dinner, so we grabbed a slice of apple pie and a brownie from the Cotton Mill on the way back to the room, then called it a night.

Day 6 - Wednesday Nov. 17

After last night's E-Ride, we weren't so energetic this morning, but even so, we still made it to the bus depot by 8:30. We decided it was time to see Animal Kingdom. I'm afraid we weigh in on the side of "not so crazy about this park". I think they did an unbelievable job with it. I am very impressed with the landscaping, the architecture, and even the way the animals are presented, but it's just not enough to make up for my big distaste of zoos. Now, I really, really don't like zoos, so it says a lot that I will even go here, but I still have trouble seeing animals in captivity. I can appreciate the fact that some zoos, like this one, do help to save some animals, but it's still difficult not to feel that at least some of these animals would be better off in the wild. I do "appreciate" this park, and it's attention to detail - I just don't enjoy it as much as the other parks.

Anyway, off to Dinoland, and Countdown to Extinction - no wait. I really like this one, even if it is too jerky. I do wish, though, that it wasn't quite so dark. I'm sure that's part of the idea, but it just feels like there is more to see, and that you're missing a lot of it.

Next, we checked out the 1999 Dinosaur Jubilee. I enjoyed seeing all the dinosaur casts, but it didn't do anything for Rocky. Somehow, he has never had an interest in dinosaurs. I'm not sure where my interest comes from - maybe from watching Land of the Lost as a kid?

Next stop, Asia. This was all new since our last visit. We stood on the bridge and watched people on Kali River Rapids for a while. Rocky got a kick out of controlling the elephants. The people look so surprised when they get hit with them. You'd think that by that point they would be prepared to get more wet. Well, we decided that it was fun to watch, but we didn't need to drenched ourselves. Instead, we got a couple of frozen bananas, and watched some more. (Bananas are fruit - this makes a good breakfast food, right?)

After the bananas, we took the Maharaja Jungle Trek. Boy, those bats are even creepier up close than I imagined. I don't know what it is, but I can' t watch them without getting the chills.

The tigers were beautiful, but pretty lazy this morning. I love the look of the ruins where they're kept, though. If they have to keep them captive, at least they seem to have some room to roam.

Rocky wanted to sit for a minute, so I checked out a gift shop. (Can a woman ever shop too much?) There was some load ruckus nearby, sounded like some sort of ape. Rocky thought they were just piping in the sound for effect. If they were, that was some incredible audio-animatronic! The source of the mayhem was some sort of monkey or ape (I guess I should know these things). He seemed to have some sort of island with some building "ruins" all to himself - and he was just goofy off, swinging around and whooping and hollering like crazy. Ever wonder what these animals are thinking about?

We wandered back through Africa, decided on an early lunch at Pizzafari. Rocky got an Italian sandwich and I got a hot veggie sandwich, and we split a lemonade. Both were very tasty - Rocky pronounced it the best sandwich he had at the World.

It's sad, but that was all we wanted from the Animal Kingdom - so back to DxL. Housekeeping wasn't done yet, so we kicked back on lounge chairs by the quiet pool. This time of day, the quiet pool really was quiet. It was nice. We decided that we'd been at it too hard so far and we needed a break - no more parks for today. We checked out the arcade: did a round of air hockey, and a couple of old pinball games. Another look at Fulton's General Store, casual dinner at the food court, that was about it. (For those still with me, don't worry - tomorrow's a bit more interesting.)

Day 7 - Thursday, Nov. 18

Today we were actually up and ready to go early - I guess because we took it easy yesterday. Our original plan was to hit the Magic Kingdom first, see some of what we missed, and have our picture taken. Our camera had broken a couple days earlier, and I knew my mother would be so disappointed if there were no pictures of both of us. However, it was early entry, and we thought it might be too busy. Neither one of us really felt like having our picture taken (hermits don't like photos much at all), so we scrapped that idea, and decided to head for Epcot again. The Magic Kingdom will always be my favorite, but there's just more to see and do at Epcot. We took our time getting to the bus depot so we wouldn't be too early, got to Epcot right around 8:30. Since we had scrapped the photo idea, we decided to let one of those camera people at the entrance to Epcot take one. I wouldn't say it was our best, but it was tolerable - and kinda neat having a photo of Spaceship Earth with the Mickey wand thing in the background. And both of our mothers will be happy. (Rock's mom isn't quite as bad as mine - with 5 kids, the pressure is spread out. I only have one brother and he's as big an introvert as me - not married, no kids - what my mom wouldn't do for grandchildren. Oh well.)

We had already done Test Track twice, and we had seen most of what we wanted to in Future World, so we just kind of wandered until World Showcase opened. We got those egg and cheese English muffins and orange juice at the Electric Umbrella - Rock's with bacon. We checked out Mouse Gear again. We were beginning to get desperate for a souvenir for Rock's mom. She was babysitting our cats for us while we were away, so we wanting to get something nice for her, but after two previous trips & gifts, we were having trouble thinking of something original. We stressed about this for several days, and ended up with just a sweatshirt at the last possible minute. Not very creative, but it will have to do. (We're awful at gift-giving - how do you know what someone else will like?)

Next, we checked out Innoventions. We just don't much get into that "hands-on" stuff. I guess we want spoon-fed entertainment on our vacations. We work too hard the rest of the year - vacations are for having someone else do all the work.

We sat through the "Ultimate Home Theater Experience". For only $80,000.00, you too can have the ultimate home theater! (That's like only twice the price of our whole house!) Pretty impressive, but I think it will have to wait.

We finally came across the virtual postcards - a little late, but we sent a couple to our moms anyway.

Next, we headed for the Wonders of Life Pavilion. Neither one of us is crazy about Body Wars, Rocky doesn't like Cranium Command, and we didn't feel the need to do the Making of Me again, so we just kinda floated around, and that was about it.

We headed toward the entrance to World Showcase, and watched some kids playing in the fountains. I love to watch all the birds at WDW, too. We just don't have the same kind of birds here in Ohio. All those long beaks and long legs - I don't know, they're just amusing for some reason.

Once WS was open, we started in Mexico and worked our way around. I was curious about rice cream, so we stopped in Norway. Sorry folks, this one was a disappointment - just didn't do it for us. Is it an acquired taste?

Continued around, looking in shops and just enjoying the sights. Rocky had some ribs at the Food and Wine Festival kiosk in the American Pavilion - says "not bad".

We stopped in France, checked out the perfumes. I've tried, just can't seem to find a perfume that fits me. (Perhaps it's just as well - they aren't exactly cheap here.) And for those allergic, I actually made a conscious decision not to wear a fragrance in the parks this time.

Somehow, we'd never managed to catch Impressions de France before, so this time we stopped. I liked it - very beautiful, and I enjoyed the music. (An yone know where I can find a list of the actual songs in the order they're played?) Rocky didn't fall asleep, so I guess that's a good sign.

It seemed like a good time for a mid-day break, so we headed back to Future World, picked up our Spaceship Earth photo, and headed back to DxL. We stopped at the food court and took some cheese and fruit back to the room - one plate was too much for the both of us. Every year we debate whether or not to get a refrigerator. I hate for this stuff to go to waste, but at $6.00 a night, it's still more than we'd save by being able to keep leftovers. (I did try to save the cheese and fruit in a baggy in the ice bucket - didn't work too well.)

After a relaxing break, we headed back to Epcot around 4:00. We really didn 't have a plan for our last evening, but it seemed appropriate to spend it at the official "Millennium" park.

We headed towards World Showcase, and I made a really crazy decision. It was the last chance, and I guess I was feeling particularly adventurous, so I decided to attempt the "Paragon Challenge". Now, mind you, I really didn' t think I'd succeed on my first try. (What if they changed the secret password?) I most likely would've chickened out if I really thought it through. Instead of thinking, I just plunged forward and went for it. We took a turn south of the border, I said the magic word, and suddenly the Mighty Paragon appeared. Wow. What can I say? I was stunned - and completely awkward, at a loss for words. Rocky was thinking clearly enough to show her my special badge - I'm sure she had no idea who we were. I managed to blurt out our names, and she was extremely gracious. While hesitant, with hand on boxcutter holster, she managed to handle the situation beautifully, and make us feel quite welcome. After she had a chance to see that we were completely harmless (and scared to death, really), she even let us see the actual boxcutters up close. I felt bad for not having the proper caffeinated offering, but she didn't seem to mind. I'll be better prepared next time. We discussed everything from felines to thrill rides, to trolls (she "could care less" about them). I would've enjoyed some more conversation, but Rocky was giving me one of those "looks" - you know, that "isn't it getting late?" sort of look. Meeting strange people is difficult for hermits. What a thrill, though - definitely a highlight of the trip.

To commemorate the occasion, I wanted to buy a souvenir in Mexico. That's when I remembered - Tiny Hats! Well, I don't personally have a sock-puppet, but I knew I had to get one anyway. If everyone buys Tiny Hats, maybe they' ll make more! (I looked for those Tiny Kilts, never found them.)

We continued our stroll, just soaking it all up. We got some cinnamon glazed almonds. We had loved these last year, not quite as good this time - maybe they need to be fresh? We caught some of Mo Rockin' in the Morocco Pavilion - pretty cool. Made another stroll through the Millennium Village - still didn't do it for us. We did give the little food court a try, though. Rocky had a deli-type sandwich and I had a grilled veggie sandwich - not bad. We split a coke and a piece of baklava - really, really sweet. I guess that was just a little too much sugar for us.

On our way out of WS, we caught the end of an Off Kilter performance - gotta get that CD. One more stop in Mouse Gear, and a final ride on Spaceship Earth (no wait). We said our good-byes to Epcot and headed back to DxL. A little TV and a lot of packing, and we called it a night.

Day 8 - Friday, Nov. 19

It's our last morning. We had Mickey wake us up, so we wouldn't be late. Rocky wasn't too happy when that phone rang. I think we were pretty beat by now. I always hate to admit it, but I'm usually ready to head home by the end of the week.

We finished packing and got to the Magic Kingdom right at 8:30. We always have to make this our first and last park. Our final goal was the New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Alas, it wasn't to be. We had made the mistake of saving something we wanted to do until the last minute - not a good idea. They were experiencing technical difficulties this morning, so we had to make Peter Pan's Flight the final ride of the trip. Oh well - it' s good to have things to look forward to on your next trip.

One last shopping binge and it was back to DxL. Mohammed (Tiffany Towncar) was right on time, and whisked us off the airport. Except for the woman two seats up from us who had had just a few too many beers, it was an uneventful flight. (Does alcohol effect your hearing? Drunks talk *really* loud. Oh well, it was good for a laugh.)

Kind of interesting landing note: as we were pulling up to the gate, we noticed another plane that appeared to be debarking on the runway. We thought it rather odd - did they really still use those old stairways to unload people? I think Rocky made some sort of comment about "Con Air" - he didn't know how close he was! Turns out that there *was* some suspicious activity on the plane, and the pilot decided not to take off. Kind of creepy - heard about it on the radio on the way home. Unfortunately, so did Rocky's mom - she was rather relieved when we got home and called her. (You know the media - big scare at Columbus airport - no real details.)

Anyway, we're back in one piece, and already thinking about our next trip, but glad to see our cats again. And they're glad to see us. The "baby" (he 's actually 4 now) didn't eat much all week, and just hissed at grandma. He hasn't left us alone since we got back. Anyway, that's about it. We had a wonderful time, and hope that maybe we shared just a small part of that joy with all of you. ºoº

Kitty Smith

kitty@ecr.net

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