Trip Reports

Jan. 30, 1999: I live here; the visitors stayed with a friend who also lives here
Yes, I know I go to the parks all the time, but I've been looking forward to a chance to write a Trip Report, and when a friend told me that some friends of his were coming to Orlando to see WDW, I jumped at the chance to show them around.
Players:
Myself, FL APer & WDW Native
John, FL resident, but Canadian at heart, hasn't been to WDW since he was 8
Paul, artist friend of John's visiting from Canada, never been to WDW
Doug, Paul's friend who accompanied him, hasn't been to WDW in a few years
Chris, a Star Tours CM who knew Paul from online because Paul is a big Star Wars fan, and who let them in on his main gate pass
We arrived at TTC, 10PM as scheduled, to meet Chris, who was wearing a Guest of Honor badge with his online name so we could find him. I was a bit skeptical at first. Since John and I didn't know Chris, I was afraid we'd end up splitting into two groups. Not only that, but he suggested we go to Animal Kingdom and the guys were off after him before I could get in a word. Hey, I was supposed to be the know-it-all tour guide!

But on the bus, I got to talk with Chris and found out I was wrong about him (he later told me that he was glad I came; he expected everyone to know nothing about Disney and I made him feel at ease).

Animal Kingdom

After we were inside the park, Chris and I decided to take the guys to the 3D film. They really wanted to see Festival of TLK first, but the next show wasn't for an hour. We headed for the Tree.

Tough to be a Bug - One thing I was reminded of is just how hard it is to find the entrance to the movie. We were almost to Asia by the time we asked a CM and were directed to the other side of the Tree! The guys were fascinated by the animals on the Tree. Chris and I agreed not to tell them much about the film beforehand. We wanted to watch their faces once we got inside.

The guys didn't expect any of the special effects; they were expecting just a film. They loved it! I watched John; Chris watched the other two. John's smile got bigger and bigger through the show, and I laughed so hard when the 'cockroaches' ran under his seat. Afterwards, there was only one place that would to top that...

CTX - We headed for Dinoland next, this time more sure of where we were going. We spent the queue teaching the guys about Hidden Mickeys, and Chris told me about a few in AK. I also learned a bit more about the CM 1-year, 5-year, etc. pins. The guys loved CTX, even Paul, who is terrified of roller coaster-type rides. They were impressed by the special effects. Afterwards, Chris took us to see the junk dino, and pointed out the HM and the 1-year pin on it to me. Then we had to hurry out of Dinoland so we wouldn't miss....

Festival of TLK - I agree with everyone on RADP that this show is awesome. So did Chris, and the guys were also immediately convinced. We sat at the very front, and got a good look at the performers, although the action on the other side of the stage was a bit hard to see. The guys were all big smiles. Once they were clapping and forgot about it halfway through, because they were so into the show. Afterwards, I found out Paul makes costumes as a hobby, and he started contemplating his own TLK designs....

We stopped at a TLK kiosk afterwards to look for a Kovu plushie for Paul and Doug. However, we couldn't find any, even after Chris got the CM to call about it. As we were about to leave, a woman noticed Chris' red badge and stopped him to ask directions. He quickly took off the badge, and I couldn't help but laugh. He said that people, OTOH, have come up to him, while wearing his Star Tours costume and white badge, and asked him if he worked there.

Pizzafari - We stopped here for lunch because Doug is a vegitarian, and I recalled someone on RADP recommending this place for veggies. He got the calzone and a cheese pizza. Chris and Paul headed for Flame Tree because Chris didn't like the pizza (neither do I really), and met us back at the table. I decided to get a Chicken Ceasar salad, and so did John. The Chicken Ceasar's are great! Doug liked the calzone, but agreed with us that the pizza wasn't that great. We talked for a while about various online stuff, then decided to head for the Safari.

Kilimajaro Safari - The queue was fairly long at this point, but I discovered time passes more quickly when you're in a group. I showed them sketchbook, they discussed costume-making, and we gave the guys a Traditions mini-class on WDW face/costumed characters. They were really surprised to hear about how the costumed characters aren't allowed to speak, even if assaulted. Once on the ride, we all had a good time. Most of the animals out were sluggish, but we still saw everything but the warthogs. They found the poacher part very amusing because of how contrived it was. We were going to leave for MK after this, but the Exploration Trail was nearby so we stopped there first...

Pangani Exploration Trail - My favorite animal from the Safari is the Okapi. I think it rubbed off on them, because we stayed there a while, taking pictures and just watching. One of the guys figured out how the Okapi got it's striped legs - it went to the tailor and asked for a Zebra suit, but they only had the pants.

The guys weren't really interested in the naked mole rats, the birds, or the fish. We did stop briefly at the savannah exibit though (we had to pull John away from that one; he became facinated with how you could watch the food going down the dikdiks' (sp?) throat when they swallowed.). We stopped briefly to watch the gorillas, but Chris told me why he disliked the gorillas, and what disgusting things they do, and once he had, I was eager to leave. We got some scenery photos, then left.

On our way out of the park, we got blocked by the ARTimals parade. The guys thought the costumes were ugly and cheap-looking, but we had no choice but to watch it. I spent the time discussing more CM stuff with Chris, and they learned a bit about the MK utilidors. After the parade, the guys got some shots of the Tree, then Doug stopped off to buy a embrodiered sweatshirt. There was one more thing we had to see.....

Rainforest Cafe - We didn't eat here, but we did look over the gift shop and restaurant theming. The guys were once again impressed. They got some scenery shots of the waterfall out front, then we headed for the buses.

Once we got back to TTC, there was some discussion about taking the monorail or the ferry to MK. We decided to take the monorail, and take the ferry back at closing. Once on the monorail, we got into a discussion about ride safety and some of the stupid things people can do on rides. Everyone but Paul would later witness this first hand.

Magic Kingdom

By the time we got to the park, Doug had already decided his purchase was going to become cumbersome to carry around. He was going to rent a locker ... until he found out lockers were $5. Since he had purchased the shirt that day, Chris suggested that Package Pickup might keep it for him until closing. It was worth a try, and it paid off. After Doug filled out the form, we headed up Main Street. I, of course, just had to stop by the Candy Store. We then told the guys about Smellitizers in front of the candy store and the bake shop. We would make WDW Insiders out of them yet. When we reached the hub, we didn't know where to go, until Chris suggested...

Alien Encounter - In the queue, we had another Traditions mini-class with the guys, this time about acceptible CM hand gestures. John at this point suggested that I would make a good CM, and why don't I apply for a job? Believe me, John...

We had almost got inside when an tour group got in line behind us .... all wearing the same shirts <ominous music>. It turned out they weren't Brazillian, but the guys then got told about the Brazillians. (BTW, I prefer to love everyone, so I don't hate the Brazillians; I just wish they would be better behaved.)

Once inside, we couldn't really pay attention to the preshow video because everyone was talking loudly. Too bad, I really like it and wish they hadn't missed it. The S.I.R. demonstration was much easier to pay attention to; they found it hilarious. We got separated from John and Paul in the crowds, but we kept an eye on Doug the entire show. It was so much fun watching his expression go from a smile, to a nervous smile, to an apprehensive one.

I also found out that the man walking on the catwalk is a real CM, not an animatronic; Chris got to play the part once when he worked in Tommorowland. After the show, we found out John and Paul loved the show too; their only comment was that the falling water should have been warm to make it seem more like blood/alien slobber. After a vote, we decided on Liberty Square next.

Haunted Mansion - I teased the guys in the stretch room by lip-synching and even psuedo-acting to the ghost host narration. Chris couldn't stop laughing at me, and the rest tried not to watch me.

Once on the ride, we split up: Paul and Doug in one buggy, and Chris, John, and I in another. Big mistake. Three people in one doom buggy was kinda squished. At the hitchhiking ghosts part, we joked about how there wasn't enough room for our ghost. Also, both John and Chris were dissapointed to find out the bride in the attic has a face now. After the ride, we stopped for group pictures at the stocks in Liberty Square, then headed to...

Country Bear Jamboree - This is where I really began to realize how nice it was that Chris came along. While waiting for the show, I found out he liked the Christmas version best (I was wondering if I was the only one.), and we shared many an inside joke about differences between the two shows once we got inside. John seemed to really like CBJ; I'm not sure about the other two. Afterwards, we almost stopped at Pecos Bill to eat, but found out they have no veggie menu. We decided to head for the Tiki Room, then eat.

Enchanted Tiki Room - I don't like the new Tiki Room, and I'll only go now if the people I'm with want to see it (sorry, Iago!). The rest of the group liked it, but Doug was dissapointed. He liked the old show too.

Cosmic Ray's - Eating here is one of the few other things I don't like; but Chris used to work at Ray's, and he persuaded us to go because it had a good veggie menu for Doug. And he promised me that if I tried the cheesesteak sub, I would like it. He was right. The sub was delicious, and everyone else enjoyed their meal. We sat near the stage with Sonny Eclipse, but could barely hear the show over background noise. There were some kids playing up front near the stage, and Chris told us that the stage was weight-sensitive; if one of the kids climbed up after Sonny, then Sonny would shut down.

Afterwards, Paul wanted to watch Spectromagic, but John wanted to ride Buzz Lightyear. We split up; Paul went to watch his parade, and the rest of us went back into Tommorowland. On the way to Buzz, the guys got distracted by ice cream at Auntie Gravity's. Doug became fascinated by the airbrush machine next door in Merchant of Venus, and we stood there watching it as they worked on their ice cream. When we left, the line for Buzz was kinda long and it was getting late, so we decided to ride TTA instead.

TTA - After all we had seen that day, I didn't expect this to be very interesting for them. It wasn't either, except for the tunnels. Earlier, Chris and I had told them about Walt's orginal plans to make Epcot ('scuse me, EPCOT) a city. With this in mind, they were interested in the model in the first tunnel (which makes me wonder how many who don't know about EPCOT appreciate or even understand why this model is there). They also enjoyed looking at Space Mountain with the lights on, although I think they would have rather ridden it. I pointed out something to them I think everyone in RADP has failed to mention so far - Buzz and Gordon (the two astronauts on the main lift) are gone. I hope they aren't gone for good! I also almost told them about my secret plans to become a Space Mountain CM, then move into the break room so I could live at Space Mountain, but they wouldn't have understood.

We had already decided to skip Buzz, but the third tunnel changed their minds. John put it simply, "Wow! Is that Buzz Lightyear??" And by the time we got off, the outdoor queue had almost become an indoor one so...

Buzz Lightyear - Chris hadn't seen this attraction yet. Once inside, they were all impressed with the animatronic Buzz. Chris rode with Paul, and I went with John (I was really starting to learn how larger groups view rides like these). They got on just fine, but our car had a broken gun, so we walked backwards to catch the next one. Mistake. Noone would stop to let us get on, even when we called out politely. After a minute of walking, an older couple spotted us and let us get on. I really wished we had more time to thank them. Only then did a CM show up to start directing people into the cars again. <sigh> The guys, once again, loved it. I got the lowest score, but I wasn't surprised. I'm lousy at Buzz. As we exited, Paul showed up. We still had some time before the park closed, so we decided to take the skybuckets over and then head to Splash Mountain.

Skybuckets - Once again, it was Chris, John, and me together, but this time we weren't squished.

Chris and I talked about the backstage areas visible from the skybuckets, and it made me wonder why the Imagineers didn't see the problem a long time ago and cover up the plain rooftops in Fantasyland with something more interesting. It really is bad show. We got to see a bit of Spectromagic from Liberty Square. Fortunately, the deck behind the parade path was clear so we got around it with little trouble. On the way, I noticed they had stopped the Liberty Belle in front of the parade so the guests on board could watch it. I'll have to remember that spot for next time.

Splash Mountain - The queue was pretty empty. Chris and John sat in front, and I and Doug were in the middle (Paul refused to ride Splash). We were having a great time until we rounded Chickapin hill. Ahead of us was a log that was empty except for two Brazillian boys. As we watched, they started standing up in the log (heaven only knows why). We yelled at them to sit down, and they obeyed, only to try it again at the next lift. This time we warned them that security could see them and would take them off the ride. We didn't see them try anything then for a while. We enjoyed the ride, which was running pretty good that night (although there were a few problems; I have yet to ride Splash without something malfunctioning). The big drop soaked Chris and John, and then the waterfall soaked Doug (I chose my seat wisely). When we entered the final scene, the logs were backed up. I didn't think anything about it (they back up often), until the work lights came on, and a CM ran past us (we're not sure what happened). It was at that point the Brazillians in front of us decided to get out. We yelled at them again, and they sat down. Funny, such disrespectful kids, but if you sound angry enough, they obey immediately. We finally made it to unload. I had suggested we go to Big Thunder to dry off, but there was only 8 minutes left to park close. We decided to try for it anyway.

Big Thunder Mountain - We took off for Big Thunder, running the whole way. We congratulated ourselves that we made the queue in time. Then we got down to unload some 7 minutes later to hear the CM say they had forgotten to call the greeter. We would have made it anyway. The guys loved Big Thunder and were glad they hadn't missed it.

We made our way to the main entrance, hoping we wouldn't miss the ferry back. We made it, and on the ferry the guys got their final Traditions lesson from us, this time because we had started talking about the CM dress code. Back in the parking lot, it was hard to say goodbye to Chris. We stood around for a while, chatted, and the guys sang Star Wars filk songs for us. Then it was over. We had originally decided on Downtown Disney afterwards so Paul and Doug could continue their search for a Kovu plush, but everyone was exausted.

We drove back happy. It was a great day, and it really makes me look forward to when I can play Tour Guide for my next group.

Wendy Peacock

samwise@mongoose.net

__________________
You just read a trip report that was originally published in our MousePlanet Trip Reports column.

Reader-submitted trip reports have always been an extremely popular feature here at MousePlanet. In order to improve the search functionality and shorten the time from when you submit a trip report and the report gets published, you can now post your trip reports directly to our Trip Report forums. The forums are moderated, but reports should become available for reading very quickly.