Trip Reports

TR: Nov 5th, 6th, and 7th

Pre-Disney Stuff

I suspect that there are more than a few people in this group who, when they’re offered the opportunity to travel to Orlando for business, jump at it in a flash. I’m one of those people, so when I got the chance to attend a Net-related conference on November 4th, I quickly booked a flight.

I agreed to go to the conference in July or August, so I had a few months to look forward to and plan the long weekend in Orlando. I would fly down on Wednesday night, confer on Thursday, then hit the parks on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and fly back to Boston on Sunday night.

I paid $198 for the round-trip on Delta Express, and planned to stay in the conference hotel (the Caribe Royale, on International Drive) Wednesday night, then move to the Caribbean Beach for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, when I’d be joined by my girlfriend. (I guess you could say the Caribbean was a bit of a theme of this trip, although aside from a couple of birds in the lobby at the Caribe Royale, I couldn’t tell what the connection to the Islands was.)

I passed the months by reading trip reports on Brian Bennett’s site, and eventually, November 4th arrived. (The day before, I’d called reservations to see about switching to the Contemporary or the Wilderness Lodge, hoping they might’ve had some cancellations, but both were booked solid. I should have tried this a few more times in the weeks leading up to the trip.) I’d thought about trying to get to the airport early for my 5:05 flight so I could snare an exit row seat, but work interfered, and when I arrived at Logan with my two carry-ons in tow, it was about 4:30.

I was glad to be able to use the Medallion-level check-in, which shortened my wait (I can’t really explain how I wound up in this program - I think it’s a fluke). I asked for an exit row and was told that I was lucky to have a window - the flight was packed. I scarfed down a piece of Baldini’s pizza, since I’d missed lunch, made a few phone calls, and headed for the gate.

The flight boarded pretty much on time, with the stewardesses goading us to help them maintain Delta Express’ near-perfect on-time departure record (yeah, right). We all hustled to get into our seats, and then the plane sat there for about twenty-five minutes. Once underway, we didn’t make up the time because of some strong headwinds. I was happy to arrive at the Orlando Airport around 8:30.

I had rented a compact car from Avis, and thanks to their Preferred Service (which is free - you just have to sign up), I went straight to the garage across the street, handed the woman in the booth a coupon I had for a free rental day, and was given the keys to my car. The woman was even nice enough to give me directions to the restaurant where I’d be meeting a friend on International Drive.

I loaded up the jade-green Chevy Cavalier and sped off. (We saw quite a few of these jade-green cars around the city; it seems like one of those colors that no one ever requests for their own car, but that you see only with rental cars.)

I met my friend for dinner at a restaurant called Bahama Breeze, on I-Drive near the convention center. We had some drinks on the patio, then got dinner inside. I guess this was part of the faux-Caribbean theme, too. We wanted Jamaican beef patties, but they had some tarted-up version of patties - with vegetables inside! (Pure sacrilege.) We got some coconut-coated onion rings, which were huge, and I had a fried tilapia sandwich (that’s a kind of fish, to the uninitiated). The sandwiches were good - and big - but I overdid it with the fried stuff. We spent a long time talking, even after we’d finished eating. My friend had just moved to Orlando within the past month, and I wanted to know how she was enjoying it. I personally can’t imagine living in Orlando - I think it’d get to be entertainment overload. (Is that sacrilege, too?)

We said goodbye at around 11:15 or so, and I headed to the Caribe. It’s a nice hotel - I think most of the rooms are suites - and it was reasonably priced. My room had a living room with TV, wet bar, couch and table, then a bathroom, then a bedroom. I watched some of Letterman and then hit the sack.

I’ll spare you the boring details of my conference, except to say that it was a gorgeous, 75 degree sunny day outside, and so I was glad at around 4:30 when I could finally cut out. After a quick pit-stop at a drug store across from the Caribe, I drove over to the Caribbean Beach to check in.

I’d never stayed at CBR before, but I’d read that it was the first of the moderately-priced resorts that were built in the 1980s, so I was a bit worried that it would be showing its age. There were no lines for check-in, but I drew a trainee, so the process was slow. Something I learned: conventional wisdom says that length-of-stay (or unlimited magic) passes have to correspond exactly to the number of nights you stay in the hotel. We were staying three nights, but only wanted passes for two days (we thought we might want to hit Islands of Adventure on Sunday before we left). I asked, and it wasn’t a problem. When they issued our cards, the dates on them were 11/5 and 11/6.

The resort still seems to be in great shape, and the room was fine - not at all frayed around the edges. One thing that was nice - which I think owes to the fact that it is an older resort - was that it had a nice Shower Massage showerhead in the bathroom. (None of those water-conserving ones that I recall from some of the newer resorts.) I spent some time returning some e-mails, then checked out the pool and food court, then went back to the room, made some phone calls, and set out to forage for dinner. My girlfriend was supposed to arrive at 10:40, so I had a couple hours to kill.

First I had a very cheap (and not so satisfying) steak sandwich at the Miami Subs restaurant near the Crossroads. I thought about doing some grocery shopping at Gooding’s, and began to wish we’d requested a fridge for the room. (This would’ve been a good idea, since breakfast proved a logistical challenge every morning.)

I drove over to Downtown Disney next, and as I was parking, I got a call from my girlfriend A. saying her plane was delayed. This bummed me out, since we’d been planning to hit the pool and/or hot tub when she arrived, mostly as a symbolic gesture that our vacation had started. I strolled around the West Side for about an hour, picking up a few CDs at the Virgin Megastore and a caramel apple from the Candy Cauldron. I didn’t feel like shelling out for DisneyQuest, although I’ve never been, so after checking out Cirque de Soleil’s building, and seeing what was doing at House of Blues, I went back to the CBR, watched some TV, ate the apple, then set out for the airport. A’s flight got in at midnight, and by the time we got back to the CBR it was about 12:30.

Friday

The weather was uniformly gorgeous for the entire trip. We got up and, after A. had a swim, headed over to MGM. We had no plan; it just seemed like that was a logical place to start, since it was an early-opening morning at Epcot. We waited in a looooong line at the Starring Rolls bakery to get some breakfast (I had a sticky blueberry muffin - edible, but not particularly remarkable), then hit the Great Movie Ride, Star Tours, and Muppetvision with very little time spent in line. We took some pictures at the Singin’ in the Rain umbrella, then walked around the New York area. I started what became a tradition of "degenerate Disney photos" by posing, passed out, on a bench. (Others in the series included faux shoplifting shots, and one of A. sprawled out on the pavement in front of the wheels of a vintage car, elsewhere in MGM. That one attracted a crowd.)

We caught Sounds Dangerous, which was mildly amusing but not great, then did the Rock N Roller Coaster. I thought they could’ve done a bit more with the pre-show (and why not have us standing in the control room, with the band finishing up a take in the studio), but the ride was unbelievable. I was screaming non-stop through the whole thing - the launch was incredible, and the soundtrack was an excellent touch.

We went to the ABC Commissary for lunch, which actually had some semi-healthy food - we got chicken fingers and a chicken caesar wrap. (Three stars for the fingers, two for the wrap.) Afterwards, I went back to the Coaster to get a Fast Pass for later (A. got one, too, though she decided not to ride again) and we caught the Little Mermaid show, where the effects were as impressive as ever, but Ariel was a couple beats behind the music, which drove me nuts. I did appreciate the puppetry, though, and the laser effects.

We contemplated doing some of the backstage tours, but didn’t. Instead, I hit the Coaster once more while A. shopped, and then we left the park, just as the Mulan parade was about to start.

We headed over to Animal Kingdom, where we ignored the other cars entering the park and drove closer to the entrance, where we easily found a spot (it was almost 4 pm, and there was a steady stream of people leaving - and freeing up parking spaces.) We headed directly for the Safari, since they were closing that at 5 pm, and walked right on. We saw a decent smattering of animals - warthogs, cheetah, a lioness, elephants - before the Little Red story intruded. I got a frozen banana in Africa, and we headed for "Tough to Be a Bug," which we both enjoyed. This was the first time I got a chance to look at all the posters in the pre-show area, since it wasn’t very crowded. Clever. Especially Web Side Story.

We were planning to leave after that, but then I remembered Kali River Rapids, which I had never been on, along with the fact that A. likes flume rides. We made our way to Asia, and right onto our own raft. Since we sat next to each other, and since we were the only two passengers, the raft was weighted in such a way that we tended to go over every drop backwards. We both got very wet, but we were headed back to the hotel anyway, so it didn’t matter much. I felt somewhat let down by the storyline of the ride. All I could tell is that it was something about burning trees and logging. Is there some set-up in the queue area that I missed? The ride seemed short, and, aside from the drenching, not all that thrilling. I would’ve hated to wait more than 10 minutes for this - except on a really hot day.

Back at the room, we rested and regrouped, before setting out for Epcot. We parked at the Boardwalk, and entered the park through the International Gateway, where there was a long line (due mostly, it seemed, to people with annual passes having trouble with the knuckle-readers.) A. wanted to get sushi, but instead we wound up eating our way around World Showcase, since we were there in the middle of the Food & Wine Festival. From what I remember, we noshed in Japan (good sushi), America (BBQ ribs and a cheddar cheese muffin), China (dim sum and a whole wheat pancake filled with ground beef), Switzerland (some kind of melted cheese concoction), India (pretty bad tandoori chicken), and Mexico (chorizo quesadillas with Dos Equis, which we ate sitting on the steps of the pavilion.) We also had some wine from one of the booths to get started. I’m sure that I am missing at least one booth, but it was lots of fun, and not outrageously expensive to do, at least relative to other Disney food.

We made a quick detour to Test Track to see what the wait was like (45 minutes), then stopped by Cool Station (formerly Ice Station Cool, I think) to have some apres-dinner drinks. I spilled a cup of the apple-flavored beverage, prompting A. to cut me off for the night. Before Reflections of Earth began, I got a Beaver Tail with hazelnut chocolate from Canada - my first. It was wonderful. We watched the show from the bridge between the UK and France, which was pretty crowded, then spent several relaxing moments in France, sitting on a bench as the park emptied out. These are really some of the nicest times, I think - when even we hyperactive vacationers have nothing left to plan for the day. We were simply done. A. mused that it would be cool if each of the countries had a small number of hotel rooms, done up in the different styles, that guests could stay in - complete with in-room TV from that country. Are you listening, Eisner?

When we got back to CBR, we put on our bathing suits and took a nice dip in the hot tub, after waiting for a few people to leave (it was crammed with at least ten when we arrived).

Saturday

After our unsuccessful attempt to ride Test Track last night, we decided to try to get to Epcot early today. (I should mention that in 1997, I had the opportunity to walk through the still-incomplete Test Track with one of the engineers on the project, so I was anxious to see what the ride was actually like.) We managed to get to the park by 9:30, but already there was a 45 minute line. And no Fast Pass there - or anywhere in Epcot - which is a bummer. We ate breakfast at the Electric Umbrella, which was passable, then visited the Living Seas and the Land. We decided not to wait for the new Imagination ride, where there was another 45 minute line. I noticed the pavilion is not called Journey Into Imagination anymore, but just Imagination, which made me nostalgic for the days of Figment and Magic Journeys and the original Image Works, and even Captain EO. I can imagine the guys who used to play Dreamfinder standing in the unemployment line, Figment puppets in hand.

We saw O Canada, then sang that great song (a lingering Epcot original) for the rest of the day. We went to the Millennium Village, where we ate lunch (good stuff in small portions - much like the Food and Wine Festival booths.) I liked what Saudi Arabia did with their space, but thought the Jerusalem motion simulator ride was lame, way too PC, and at its heart, poorly-done. Why would you create a motion simulator ride about the notion of religious faith? It was not necessarily in bad taste, just goofy, irrelevant, and a waste of resources. Will faithless people be transformed into believers if we shake them up in their seat for a while, with headphones on?

After leaving the Village, we checked out the small gallery in Japan, then watched the American Adventure. (I habitually nap for at least five minutes of this show, whether I want to or not.) At the America Gardens theater, we caught a few moments of a show called "Cookin," which consisted of four Japanese chefs slicing and dicing food to rock music. Kind of a take-off on percussion-oriented off-Broadway shows like Stomp and Blue Man Group, only not as interesting - basically, just a slightly dialed-up version of Benihana. And to waste all that food… yikes.

A. wanted to shop a bit in Mexico, so we did that, and wound up riding El Rio del Tiempo, since she hadn’t done that before. The film segments of the couple at the pool bar and the cliff divers always remind me of the old "If You Had Wings," which is a good memory. (If you know both rides, I wonder if you’ve ever made that abstruse connection, too.)

We swung by Test Track once more before leaving the park, and discovered that the wait was still 45 minutes. I asked about the singles line, and was told that it cut about 30 minutes off the wait, so we decided to do that. We waited about five minutes before we got into the pre-show area - it was great. We wound up in separate cars, but it was fun to compare notes afterwards. The indoor sequence wasn’t so thrilling, I thought, until you got to the crash test part, just before you leave the building. The outside part was a gas, though. And while we didn’t explore the post-show area much, it seemed well-done.

We took a break back at the CBR, reading and drinking pina coladas in one of the hammocks on the beach. By the time we got re-energized, it was dusk, and we decided to head over to the California Grill for a quick dinner before hitting the Magic Kingdom. Believe it or not, you actually can eat in about 30 or 45 minutes if you sit at the bar, where service is a lot speedier. I had some wine, and we ate a wonderful flatbread with chicken, mushrooms, feta cheese, and balsamic vinegar, and had two orders of sushi (the first one wasn’t enough). The sushi was superb - A. said it was some of the best she’d ever had, and she’s a real sushi aficionado. We were too full to get dessert just yet - we opted to wait until we were in the park.

Downstairs, we hopped the first monorail that came, which turned out to be going in the wrong direction - we were so excited that neither of us paid attention. So we took the scenic tour of the TTC and the other two monorail resorts before arriving at the park. The place was very crowded, and especially packed around Town Square, where people were waiting for the 8:00 parade. I remember when November was the off-season! It hasn’t felt that way the past two years I’ve visited during that month. Is there a single uncrowded week left at the parks, where every ride is a walk-on and you don’t have to endure a mob scene? (And that’s not just a rhetorical question.)

We tried our best to avoid the crowds, and headed for the Haunted Mansion, where there was no wait. The building always looks very foreboding at night. From there, we went to Space Mountain, where, unfortunately, they’d already stopped doling out Fast Passes for the day, and the line was an hour long. To our dismay, Carousel of Progress had closed at five. We rode the Peoplemover (aka TTA) and Alien Encounter (I’m convinced it’s a live person up above the theatre with the flashlight, taking live video), then circled back to Adventureland, where we walked through the Swiss Family Treehouse and rode Pirates. There was no line for Splash Mountain, and since it was a chilly night, we were relieved not to get too wet. The photo came out great - both of us screaming - so we bought one.

Next door, Big Thunder had a 15 minute wait, but I always feel compelled to ride this one, particularly at night. We wound up in a car too close to the front, though, which I feel makes a difference (the back seems to give you a faster ride).

When we exited, the music from the Main Street Electrical Parade was just starting, and we were able to grab seats right under the rope in Frontierland, maybe a hundred yards before the end of the parade. Hearing the synthesizers crank up instantly transforms me into a six-year old kid; I’m really happy they brought this parade back. A. hadn’t seen it before, so we both just drank in the sights and sounds. I’d forgotten about the manic turtles and snails that seem like they’re going to roll right into the crowd, but was happy to see Pete and his dragon, Captain Hook, the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland, and all the others.

When the parade ended, we realized it was only 10:40, so we scooted back to Tomorrowland and got in line at Space Mountain, where we waited about 10 minutes (the sign said the wait was still an hour) before loading into a car. There will always be a place in my heart for this ride, but it seems so tame now, compared to the Aerosmith coaster.

A. shopped a little on Main Street as the crowds began to thin out, and I sat in Town Square, just people-watching. By the time we were ready to leave, the Castle was putting on its light show - which is always a wonderful way to end the day.

Sunday

We’d been planning to head to Universal’s Islands of Adventure today, and then go straight to the airport for our evening flight, but when we got up and found another incredible day waiting for us, we impulsively decided to spend it lounging around the Disney resorts, rather than standing in line at Universal. (I’m sure there will always be other opportunities to visit IoA.)

We packed our stuff, said goodbye to the CBR, and went to the International House of Pancakes near the Crossroads for breakfast, where we drew a terrible waitress - just unbelievably inattentive. Food was good, though, and priced right. We bought some sunscreen at a pharmacy, then decided to go to the Wilderness Lodge. A. hadn’t seen it, and I thought she would enjoy it. (I was right.) I noticed the massive construction going on next door, I guess for the DVC addition, and began to worry whether the hundreds of additional guests will overwhelm the Lodge’s charm. Anyone know if they’re planning to build more pools and restaurants as part of the expansion?

After walking around, we camped on the beach for a while, before moving to the pool area. Not much activity to report - just some lazy swimming, reading, and hot-tubbing. We had a decent lunch from the Roaring Forks snack bar, and some pina coladas from the Trout Pass pool bar.

We had an hour or so to kill before we needed to be at the airport, so we drove over to see the Grand Floridian. Neither of us had ever been there, and we were both non-plussed - it seemed too fussy, and it didn’t earn a place on our list of resorts we’d like to stay at. (I think the Yacht & Beach Club is at the top of mine right now.) We saw a wedding begin at the Wedding Pavilion, with the bride arriving in a pumpkin-shaped carriage pulled by four white horses, which was neat. We walked over to the Polynesian and back, and then got in the car for the trip to the airport.

Returning the car was a breeze, but for some reason, Delta Express hadn’t given A. a seat assignment (we’d bought our tickets at different times), so she had to wait until they determined they’d have a free seat for her, which was a bit nerve-wracking. Again, the flight was full, and we didn’t get to sit next to each other because of the seat assignment problem. Both of us had two-somes next to us in our rows, so there was no opportunity to exchange seats, at least that we could see. We ate some hamburgers from Burger King that I’d picked up in the airport (no food on these flights - you have to come prepared if you’re flying at the dinner hour), read, and talked a bit in the rear of the plane. While we were sitting apart, we passed notes to each other, recapping the highlights of the trip. Some of mine were the Aerosmith coaster, Test Track, the Food & Wine Festival, dinner at California Grill, the time at the end of the day at Epcot and the Magic Kingdom, and the Electrical Parade. We got back to Boston - where it was 46 degrees - on time. And instantly began thinking those awful post-Disney thoughts: "Twenty-four hours ago, I was in Orlando, in a hammock on the beach."

Thanks for reading this far, and feel free to e-mail me if you have questions (or answers)…

Scott K.

eskay@yahoo.com

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