Trip Reports

Cast of Characters:

Aileen - the senior Disney fanatic in the family, usually an adult, but never at WDW - your trip report narrator
Cassidy - the junior Disney fanatic - usually 7 seven years old, however, on this trip she had to be the adult (someone had to do it and I pulled rank)
Summary:

Accommodations: Dixie Landings - Alligator Bayou, Lodge 15, Room 1524
Transportation: Southwest Airlines, Tiffany Town Car, and Disney Transportation
Experience: Veteran - this is my 6th visit and Cassidy's 5th visit
Dates: June 15 - 20, 1999
Day 1: Tuesday, June 15, 1999 - Travel, Downtown Disney, E-Ride

Cassidy and I both woke up as soon as Scott (husband, dad) touched us. (I mention this because Cassidy and I share a genetic tendency to be slow starters in the mornings, always looking for 5 minutes more sleep, etc.) We visited with Scott for a while before he left for the office - I needed my coffee and Cassidy needed her morning cartoon fix. After saying our good-byes to Scott, Cassidy and I put the last things in the suitcase and walked the dog - who was giving us the evil eye when we dragged the suitcases downstairs. The Airport Shuttle arrived right on time and we were the only passengers, so it was a short ride to the airport.

We checked our big bag and grabbed bagels before heading down to the gate to get boarding passes. When Southwest first moved into Baltimore, I didn't think I would ever fly them unless forced to do so, I have since changed my tune and actually pick Southwest over the other airlines available to me. We were in the first boarding group, so we would have our choice of seats. As boarding time neared, Cassidy and I moved closer to the ramp and met one of her preschool classmates and his father. Craig and Calvin were on the same flight - well, Cassidy and Calvin were so excited to see one and other that we made sure they could sit together. Craig and I took aisle seats and the kids wound up in the center and window seat next to me - Craig said that he got the better end of the deal - I was happy because the kids would keep each other busy. Well, that arrangement worked until Cassidy dozed off (another genetic thing: plane = sleep) so Calvin moved over next to his dad - there were many empty seats on this flight - I was thinking Disney magic before we even left Maryland.

We landed a few minutes early (another reason to like Southwest - this happens a lot) and walked out to baggage claim. We used this time to make plans to catch up with Craig and Calvin later in the week (they were taking advantage of "free" vacation for listening to a time-share pitch) and in no time we were riding the escalator down to baggage claim. Brian from Tiffany Town Car was waiting for us and our bag showed up a moment later. Out we went to Brian's car and a very pleasant ride to Dixie Landings. I used the $5 coupon from the web site, so our fare was $70 - I tipped $10 (reserving some for the return trip) Brian was a delight and you can be sure I will ask for him on our next trip.

There was a short line to check-in, but Cassidy used the time to check out the pressed penny machines and watch some of the movie playing in the lobby. When it was my turn to check-in, everything went great! I had requested a non-smoking room as close as possible to the food court and we were assigned a room in Lodge 15. Cassidy was happy because she really wanted that trundle bed and I was happy because I got E-ride tickets. Unfortunately, the room wasn't ready - it was only about 1:30. So, what do two unescorted women do when faced with time to kill? Go shopping!

We took the boat to Downtown Disney and our first stop was the Candy Cauldron for Diet Cokes and a Caramel Apple. This was a precedent setter and many of our meals would resemble this (told you there were no grown-ups on this trip). After that we looked in a few shops and Cassidy made her first purchase - a pair of Star Trek figures, that I got to carry. Next, we started over to the Marketplace and discovered that we had to walk through Pleasure Island. This resulted in several more purchases that I got to carry (love my backpack) before we even got close to our goal - a water mouse! Cassidy did carry the new Tigger (9" beanbag) and poor Uncle Sam Goofy was pushed to the bottom of the pack (he was supposed to be our photo character). Of course, there were more detours through stores and a ride on the little train but we finally got the water mouse. We both decided that these water mice are not as fast as the ones at the Polynesian, but we sure did have fun.

While we were on the lake, we ran into the first of what would turn out to be many rain storms. It wasn't heavy and there was no lightening, so it didn't impact our fun. In true Disney magic, the heavy rains held off until we were out of the water and heading towards the bus to go settle into our room. Our room turned out to be in an ideal location, as far as I was concerned. Lodge 15 is very close to the food court (as requested - only Lodge 14 is closer and not all the rooms) and our room overlooked a landscaped courtyard. Cassidy was ecstatic that the room had a trundle bed - guess I don't remember enough about being 7 to understand what and why some things are so wonderful.

After we unpacked and relaxed for a bit, we tried to decide what to have for dinner. Cassidy suggested Pizza Delivery, but when I called they were quoting an hour wait. Our tummies told us not to wait that long, so I walked over to the food court and picked up pizzas and our refillable mugs and brought them back to the room. After eating, we grabbed our ponchos (it was still raining) and headed out to the bus to the Magic Kingdom. We got to the South Depot (the first Dixie Landings bus stop) and very quickly had to turn around and go back to the room for the E-Ride passes. Since this is a common thing I do, Cassidy and I had a good laugh and decided it was good that I got it out of my system early. I was just happy to have discovered it before arriving at the MK. Back at the bus stop, a MK bus arrived and we were on our way.

After entering the MK, we stopped at City Hall and exchanged our passes for wristbands and headed up Main Street. We though we might try a couple rides in FantasyLand, but decided not to stand in the lines, instead, we walked over to the Haunted Mansion and only had a couple minute wait. As we were gathering in the stretch room, the CM asked why it smelled like a wet shower curtain in there. I thought I was going to ruin things for everyone there by giggling - but, I got myself under control and took in as many details as I could - one of these days, I will figure out which picture is over the door. Cassidy practically dragged me to our waiting doombuggy - HM has turned into one of her favorites. As we exited, I asked if she wanted to ride again but not this time - it was off to the Pirates of the Caribbean. Only the right side queue was open, but we just kept walking and walking - right into a boat. We were able to get the front seat and had another great ride.

After exiting Pirates, it was time to hit Big Thunder Mountain - by this time, they were checking for wristbands and after flashing ours (easier said then done with them hidden inside our ponchos) we walked right on to our runaway train. This was the first time I had ridden this at night and I really enjoyed it - of course, it was a different ride, between the rain and slipping around on my poncho. Next, was Splash Mountain - I had never been on this one either (Cassidy had always chickened out because of the drop, but she insisted that she was going to try all the mountains this time). Again, after flashing our wristbands we started down the queue - and kept walking and walking. As we walked, Cassidy was starting to get cold feet and I kept reassuring her that the big drop was no scarier then anything on Big Thunder Mountain. After a moments thought, she announces that she didn't want to get wet (this logic escaped me since we were still wearing our ponchos) and I explained that I had read that if we sat in the back of the log, we wouldn't get wet (Thanks RADP for all the info!). So, with all the qualms finally put to bed, we arrived at the loading platform and asked for the back of a log. As soon as we got going, Cassidy's whole expression changed from worry to delight and we both had a blast. This one is now a definite must do for future visits.

Now, it was time to walk over to the other side of the park and visit TomorrowLand. Our first stop was Buzz Lightyear and we had maybe a five-minute wait. We took off our ponchos and I stuffed them in my backpack (it had stopped raining as we were walking in). Cassidy and I climb into our vehicle and away we go, where I was reminded of another genetic trait - Cassidy is extremely competitive (yes, I'm to blame) and was terribly bummed out when her final score was once again 0. I tried to explain that all the red lights looked alike, but all I got back was "this ride is stupid and I'm never going on it again". Oh well, off to Space Mountain. It was after midnight by now and Cassidy was getting tired (OK, so was I) and tired 7 year olds don't like to try new things so we took the chicken exit after walking through the queue. Cassidy was very concerned about making me miss this one, but I told her that there would always be next time and it was a lot of fun to always get to do something for the first time on each of our visits. We decided to ride Astro Orbiter and then call it a night, but had to stop and see Goofy first - he was the first character that we had seen that Cassidy wanted to stop and visit - boy, is she getting jaded. Astro Orbiter had a short wait, maybe 10 minutes - the longest of the evening - and we both enjoyed it, but decided it could be moved to the 'only if there is no line' pile for future visits.

We walked out and caught the next bus to Dixie Landings. There was a bunny in the bushes as we walked back to our room, so we had to stop and watch it for a minute. After getting in our room, we both had just enough energy to climb into bed and were sawing logs in no time.

Day 2: Wednesday, June 16, 1999 - Epcot, Resort, Main Street Electrical Parade

Our only plan for today was lunch at Le Cellier in Canada at noon and I started the day not sure if we'd make it on time. After our long day yesterday, we both slept until about 9 and Cassidy was her typical slow starter. I left her watching cartoons and walked to the food court for coffee, juice and croissants. When I got back, Cassidy decided that the croissants were another good reason to stay at Dixie Landings.

We finally made it out to the bus stop about 10:30 and arrived at Epcot near 11:00. The lines at the turnstiles seemed very long and I got a little nervous, but then I realized that not all the turnstiles were open - whew! Anyhow, it turned out that our first stop was a store (surprise!) so Cassidy could buy a pin and passport and then we were off to Ice Station Cool. We tried several of the sodas - Cassidy liked the ginger ale, apple and orange, I thought the diet whatever was better then nothing, but not much. I overheard a lady telling her companions to try the Beverly because it was so good - only the hint of smile gave her away - I had to tell her she was bad. After making arrangements to have a Coke Bear sent back to our room, Cassidy and I headed off to lunch. We arrived a few minutes before noon, but we were seated right away (I would have been surprised if we hadn't the restaurant was mostly empty). I decide to try a Blanche de Chambly ale with my meal and really enjoyed it - light and fruity, it really hit the spot that day. Cassidy announced that she wanted a steak for lunch, so she and I split a New York Strip Steak. I got the oven roasted potatoes gratin that came with it and Cassidy got a side order of their mashed potatoes - I had to fight to even get to try them - both potatoes were yummy, as was the cheddar cheese soup I started with. We also really enjoyed the breadsticks that came with lunch - Cassidy ate the sourdough and I had the pretzel (I think I got the better choice here) and we tried the multigrain (definitely the third place finisher in this group). After lunch, we saw O Canada! - this was a first for Cassidy and she said it was pretty good.

It was time to start walking off lunch, so we headed off to the UK. Our first stop was, what else, a shop! Cassidy purchased an Eeyore Bean Bag (a 9" one) for me. I was so touched that she wanted to buy him for me, she had been saving her money for a long time and I had figured it would only come out when I said no to buying something.

We saw Mary Poppins next and Cassidy had Mary sign her autograph book - this was the first time we had ever seen Mary. Then, it was on to France to paint a picture. Cassidy really likes to paint at the Kid Stop in France and I enjoyed relaxing in the shade. We thought about dessert from the pastry shop, but realized that we were still too full. We had one last stop to make in Japan - like every other child in the US these days, Cassidy collects Pokemon cards and was hoping to find them in Japan. We watched the candy artist for a bit and Cassidy learned how to do an Origami star before we ventured into the big department store. OK, so the rain chased us into the store and kept us there for a while. We did find some Pokemon items, but no cards. I just hope I can figure out how to make the Pokemon Origami - all the directions are in Japanese, but there are lots of pictures.

The rain had stopped, so it was time to leave the store. The Matsuriza drummers were beginning, so we had to stop and listen for a bit. I find it amazing how wonderful these folks make drums sound. We decided that our feet were tired, so we took a Friendship back across the lagoon and walked back to Ice Station Cool - Cassidy wanted more soda, but they were closed. I finally prevailed and we continued out to the bus.

Since the sun was back out at this point, our plan was to go swimming and rent bikes. Of course, this being the rain week, the clouds were back by the time we walked out of the room. No problem, right, we're going to get wet anyhow - wrong, the main pool was closed because of lightening in the area. OK, we'll get bikes first. As we approach the bike rental area and Cassidy is really clamoring for a Surrey Bike. I had to be the bad guy and state emphatically that we would not be getting one - no way was I going to be able to get one of those moving when I would be the only one pedaling! I did promise that when she gets taller (on a future visit) we would get one. Instead, we rented a bike with an Alley Cat tag-along. We rode down to Port Orleans and all around Dixie Landings a couple times (it did start raining while we were riding). I had to remind Cassidy to pedal each time we came to a hill - she was enjoying the ride. We stopped under the bridge during a period of real heavy rain and giggled about how much more fun the rain was at WDW then at home. When we returned the bike, we gave up on swimming (the pool was still closed) and returned to the room to dry off. While in the room, we tried to reach Craig and Calvin to see if we could hook up with them, but no luck - we'll try again tomorrow.

Cassidy decided to eat the leftover pizza from last night (I had to wait until college to discover day-old pizza) and we watched some TV before heading out to the MK. I really wanted to see the Main Street Electrical Parade and it had stopped raining - finally! We caught our bus and made the long walk in from the Dixie Landings bus and headed back to FantasyLand. (This walk almost made me wish Dixie Landings and Port Orleans still shared the MK route.) We rode It's a Small World and checked the line for Dumbo, still too long, so we rode the carousel instead. As we were riding, I noticed that you could see the Main Street Electical Parade coming up Main Street through the castle. How cool! Next, it was The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. We had about a 20 minute wait, but it went by quickly as Cassidy got talking to the girls behind us and I talked to their parents. I had to take lots of pictures of the queue area - Cassidy wanted a photo of every character and pretty soon we were climbing into our Hunny Pot. I thought that the Hunny Pots could have been rounder, but I had no trouble figuring out what they were supposed to be. We both enjoyed our ride and we particularly liked bouncing and floating. All too quickly, we were exiting the ride and walking through the gift shop. Neither one of us saw anything to buy and it was getting close to time for the fireworks. We watched the fireworks from FantasyLand and did a little more shopping.

At that point, our plan was to find a snack and relax while waiting for the second parade. Continuing our healthy eating habits, we stopped at Sleepy Hollow for a Brownie Delight (brownie, ice cream, whipped cream, M&M's, fudge sauce). We were going to sit there, but Cassidy wanted to move down into Liberty Square, so we settled in front of the Hall of the Presidents. After plowing through the brownie, I tried to get some popcorn from a cart across the street - this was the only time I ran into a rude CM. As I was walking up to the cart, the young lady switched off the light and started a conversation with a friend. I stood in front of the cart for several minutes before she even acknowledged my presence and then told me she was closed and couldn't sell me any popcorn. Oh well, back to relax with Cassidy. Cassidy cuddled up next to me and decided that she wanted to rest her eyes for a bit, but that I should wake her when the parade started. So, that's what I did - when the lights went out where we were sitting, I woke Cassidy up so she could see the Blue Fairy arriving. We both really enjoyed this parade and I really liked it when Elliot showed us his trick and disappeared - of course, I have always liked dragons. Once the parade was past us, Cassidy and I started the walk out of the park. Her cat nap gave her enough energy to stop in the Emporium for a little shopping.

Thankfully, when we got out to the bus stop, one was waiting for us and we wasted no time in getting back to the room and right to sleep.

Day 3: Thursday, June 16 - Epcot, Blizzard Beach, Animal Kingdom, Bonfamille's Café

It was another late morning and when I returned from picking up breakfast (more croissants, coffee, hot chocolate) Cassidy told me that I had missed Craig's call. So, I called him right back and learned that he and Calvin were just pulling into the MK parking lot. We made plans to meet at 3:30 at Animal Kingdom by the stroller rental. Cassidy and I had decided to visit a water park today and she picked Blizzard Beach, based upon what she had seen on the resort information channel. I had also decided that with trips planned for October 1999 and March 2000, that trading in our partially used Annual Passes for new Premium Annual Passes made sense. In order to do this, our first stop had to be Guest Services at a park or Downtown Disney. A park made more sense to me and the Epcot bus was the first to arrive, so off we went. I hopped right in line at Guest Services and explained to Judy what I wanted to do. Turn in these partially used annual passes for credit on two new premium annuals - she said no problem and even was able to have all the personal info transfer over so there was no need to re-enter it all. As I was signing the credit card slip, Cassidy asked why she never had to sign anything and I started to explain about the charge card. Judy jumped right in and told Cassidy that since these were annual passes, she had to sign for hers and turned the slip over and had Cassidy sign the back. The ear to ear grin Cassidy had let me know how special she thought this was. Payment taken care of, Judy asked if we would be using the passes right away - of course, Cassidy could hear Ice Station Cool calling her. Before we could leave, Judy said just a minute and walked away from the window. When she came back, she gave Cassidy a Winnie the Pooh keychain and told her that was for being so well behaved while we took care of the tickets. More grins from Cassidy and she had to tell Judy that she was going to put it on her backpack (along with the 20 others) to drive her dad crazy. I have sent a letter to Disney to compliment Judy - she certainly did go above and beyond to make Cassidy feel special.

Our passes worked without a hitch and we were on our way to Ice Station Cool. I made us detour through Innoventions to send a couple postcards (http://www.ibm.com/Epcot/postcards/1236F2) and Cassidy had to play some of the Sega games. On our way out, we stopped at the Balzac cart and had to get one with Goofy on it - so much for a quick stop to try some soda. Finally, we make it into Ice Station Cool - Cassidy had the sodas she liked and agreed to leave. Back out to the bus stop and I look for a sign that says Blizzard Beach - not to be found. I ask the driver of the Animal Kingdom bus and he points me to the last stop around the corner. I double check at the info desk and the All-Star bus is indeed the right one. It turns out that the All-Star route is for both Epcot and Blizzard Beach. Cassidy and I both enjoyed getting to see some of the All-Star resorts but we wanted to be at Blizzard Beach.

Finally at Blizzard Beach, we rented a locker and set up camp near the Ski Patrol training camp. Time to get wet - Cassidy decided to start with Cross Country Creek and away we go. I got us a triple tube and Cassidy spent much of the time pulling me or swimming ahead - unless there was water to steer me under. I didn't mind except for the water in the ice cave - boy, was that cold. Part way around the creek, it started to rain - hard. Well, we were wet anyhow so no big deal - except for the towels that were waiting for us. When we got back to our chairs, the towels each had about 20 gallons of water in them and our t-shirts had about 10. We grabbed our stuff and walked over to one of the covered areas and joined the several families already there.

Cassidy was bummed because as we were collecting our things, the water attractions got closed due to lightening in the area. So we wait until things open again and about 20 minutes later, Cassidy is climbing across the ice flows. I pointed the T-Bar drop out to Cassidy and she tried that several times and then had to try the slides out. I dragged her up to the top of the mountain, thinking we would try Teamboat Springs. Nope - Cassidy wanted to try the Toboggan Racers. We walk around to the toboggan slides and as we're getting our mats, Cassidy decides instead to try Snow Stormers. This is a fast fun ride - I wanted to go again, but it was coming up on time to head out to meet Craig and Calvin. I drag Cassidy out of the water and we trade our wet towels for dry towels and get ready to leave the park. Again, I find that there is no direct bus to Animal Kingdom, so we hop on the Coronado Springs bus, figuring to transfer there. As we pull into CS, the driver flips the sign to Animal Kingdom/Blizzard Beach - what luck.

As we are entering Animal Kingdom (we arrived right at 3:30) it starts to rain again. Thankfully, we can wait under cover by the stroller rental. While we were waiting, a CM asked if we'd take a survey. She was asking about what brands/sponsors did I recall seeing on this and previous visits to Animal Kingdom. As she asked, I realized that either Disney kept them from being blatant or I've been walking around with my eyes closed - oh well, I did remember Rain Forest Café, Kodak and McDonald's. When we were done, Craig and Calvin were walking up - so Cassidy and Calvin start jumping up and down. I decided to rent one of the double strollers for the kids and we used Cassidy's poncho as a rain cover. They had a blast riding together and I think they would have been happy just doing that.

I suggested to Craig that we walk over to DinoLand so the kids could play in the Boneyard. Well, the rain had other ideas and the Boneyard was closed - lightening in the area again and too much metal in the Boneyard. That left the Dinosaur jubilee for us to see (Cassidy does not want to ride Countdown to Extinction again and Calvin doesn't make the height requirement). We killed some time looking at the fossils and then decided to head over to Kilimanjaro Safaris. We were able to walk right on to our safari jeep and had one of the better safaris we've ever been on. Our guide said that the rain brings many of the animals out and she was right. We saw black and white rhinos, hippos, tompson gazelles, giraffes, elephants, ostrich, water bucks, cheetah, wart hog, lions and a bunch of others that I can't remember. One group of rhinos were right up along side the road - Craig and I got a good laugh over him straining to get a picture out the left side of the jeep when there was one standing right next to him on the right. Cassidy and Calvin were happy that we help save Little Red, however, I was totally underwhelmed by the whole poacher thing.

After our safari, neither kid wanted to walk the Pangani Forest Trail, so we opted to walk back to Safari Village since Cassidy and I needed to leave soon to meet my dad and stepmom for dinner. That gender thing kicked in again and Cassidy and I couldn't leave without shopping a little bit. We left the stroller with Craig and Calvin since they planned to stay until the park closed and I had to purchase a new poncho for Cassidy (the kids had been poking their heads though the hood while in the stroller and tore the neck on the old one). With a last stop for a Mickey Mouse Ice Cream Sandwich on the way out, we walked to the bus. I thought our luck was changing because the bus was waiting when we got there and continued to wait after we got on. We must have sat for 10 or 15 minutes before the driver got on - this surprised me because the bus was full long before we left.

Oh well, we still had time to change and walk over to Port Orleans for dinner. We arrived a few minutes late to meet Dad and Carol, but right on time for our priority seating. We were seated right away and all enjoyed our meal. Cassidy had the kids chicken tenders with corn and mashed potatoes - after assuring our server that she could eat corn on the cob with no front teeth. Everyone enjoyed their meal and we had a good time catching up with Dad and Carol.

After dinner, we showed them around the grounds at Port Orleans (we had stayed there in February) and then we decided to take them back over to Dixie Landings. Cassidy wanted to take the path back, so she and Dad did that - I think it was because she wanted to ride on Grandpa's scooter. Carol and I took the car over and met Dad and Cassidy by the bike rentals. We showed them the grounds and then Carol and I got left to entertain ourselves while Cassidy and Grandpa went exploring. When they finally got back, it was time for Dad and Carol to make the drive home to Ocala, so after saying our goodbyes, Cassidy and I played some air hockey in the arcade and then it was off to bed.

Day 4: June 18, 1999 - Family Magic Tour, Tarzan Meet, Resort

This was the only morning that we had to be up and moving early and I remembered why we weren't doing this every morning. After dragging Cassidy out of bed and half dragging her to the bus, we made it to the MK around 8:40. We had to meet at City Hall at 9:15, so we had time to play a game of checkers outside the candy store. This has become something of a tradition for us and I wasn't about to break tradition now. (Oh yes, I lost, but not before getting in trouble for getting the first king and then for not trying hard enough) After our game, we stopped at the name tag cart, where Cassidy got a Tigger pin and I got a Mickey keychain - they were engraved while we waited. Our next stop was the hat shop to pick up a set of ears for a friend's new baby and then it was finally time to check in for our tour.

As the families were assembling I got a little concerned because the adults far outnumbered the kids (there were 3 family groups - for a total of 8 adults, 4 kids, 1 toddler and 2 infants). I got over it quickly when I realized that most of the other adults were kids trapped in adult bodies - just like me! Our guide Brook arrives and explains that Peter Pan has stolen Captain Hook's hook and that Captain Hook is threatening to destroy the MK if he doesn't get his hook back. He asks if we can help figure out the clues Peter has left and after everyone shouts 'YES!!!!', we're off to save the MK. Cassidy had a great time and was quite pleased that she found the first hidden Mickey in the sign outside TimeKeeper and that she knew about the floating granite ball. I believe that many families will laugh for many years when they watch their videotapes of us 'silly' walking through TomorrowLand and pretending to be crocodiles through AdventureLand. I got another case of the giggles walking through AdventureLand, flapping my arms like a crocodiles mouth and saying 'Tick-Tock' to scare Captain Hook. Brook asked if everyone was felling brave and had us all yell 'Captain Hook is a codfish' into Pirates of the Caribbean. Our last clue brough us over to Liberty Square and when we finally solved all the clues we walked into the garden behind the Christmas Shop to look for the missing hook. Nobody could find the hook and Brook is starting to get concerned, when finally Peter Pan jumps out of the bushes with the hook. All the kids and many of the adults got their picture taken with Peter and the scroll of clues and then Peter took all the kids off to ride his ride with him. We all got to ride without waiting (boy did we all feel special) and Brook had to explain to more then one family that this was a special tour and they could find out about it at City Hall.

When we were done with our ride, Cassidy and I went over to Casey's for lunch. After Tigger had his fill of Cassidy's hot dog, she and I ate every last crumb. It was time to start heading to Downtown Disney for the Tarzan meet, but the lure of a shop grabbed both of us and in we went. Cassidy purchased a giant Tigger (with her money, so I couldn't argue) and I got a Monorail - after arranging to have them shipped home, I realized that we were going to cut it close, but I thought we could do it. Wrong - there is no direct bus to Downtown Disney from the MK bus stop, so we had to take the ferry to the TTC and catch a bus to Typhoon Lagoon/Downtown Disney. To add insult to injury, the Pleasure Island bus stop was closed, so we had to walk from the Marketplace stop.

We finally arrived and found the group - we saw Alison (Paragon) beading some fine looking gentlemen and one of the junior inductees gave Cassidy a set of beads. I jumped in line to purchase our tickets, only to discover that the 2:00 show was sold out - oh well, I got tickets for the 2:45 show and we visited with Nancy and Alison for a few moments before they headed into the show. Cassidy and I wandered down to the theatre for our show and relaxed in the cool comfortable seats (I probably could have taken a nap). Once the show started, Cassidy forgot all about not being with all 'the computer people' and we both really enjoyed the show. After the show we headed back over to the Marketplace for ice cream at Ghiradellis and got detained by a store again. We shopped in the Lego Store and Cassidy tried very hard to convince me to get her the biggest Amazon Adventure set - she finally settled on a smaller set and we left to get the ice cream I now desperately wanted. Once again, the rain forced us into the World of Disney. At this point I was beginning to think that Disney controlled the rain, as it kept making us find shelter in stores and we weakly would have to buy something. When the rain let up (it had been coming down in sheets) we finally got our ice cream.

We decided that we would go back to Dixie Landings and swim for a while and then decide what to do. We actually made it into the pool this time and while Cassidy was swimming, I soaked in the jacuzzi for a while. While there, the hidden grown-up popped out and I told a couple kids that this wasn't the pool and would they not play catch in the jacuzzi. I did feel a little bad when they left and went back to the main pool, but not for long. Cassidy joined me for a while but decided that the jacuzzi was boring, so I went over to the water slide with her. We swam for a bit and it started to rain again - so hard that they closed the pool because the guards couldn't see the bottom. We moved over to a table with an umbrella (at least our towels were dry) and waited for the pool to open again. Within 5 minutes, Cassidy was back in the pool and I decided that a frozen drink was in order. The bartender made my day when he pondered for a moment whether to let me have a drink without showing him proof of age (all I had was my resort ID) - I'm glad he decided to, because he made a very good frozen margarita - ahh, what a life. Well, our short visit to the pool turned into a long visit and I finally dragged Cassidy out of the water when the lifeguards went off duty. We got dressed and walked over to the food court for dinner and tried to decide what to do next.

Cassidy wanted to play in the arcade again and I wanted to go see Fantasmic. Guess who won? We made it an early night and figured to catch Fantasmic Saturday night - at least I won the air hockey game.

Day 5: Saturday June 19, 1999 - Blizzard Beach, Resort

Another late morning - but it felt good to sleep. My husband and mother would be proud of me - they still talk of our May 97 trip like it was the Bataan Death March. OK, so maybe I was just a little over the commando line. Cassidy was even slower to wake up this morning but I figured that was just the week catching up with her.

We headed out to Blizzard Beach and I figured that we would get something to eat there, since Cassidy didn't want any breakfast. We got a locker and set up camp under one of the little pavilions - I wanted to be sure the towels stayed dry, no matter what. Our first stop was Cross Country Creek and we started to float around and the rains came again. It really had been sunny when we got into the creek. The rain didn't last long and we got out of the creek about half way around - I wanted to get some of the slides under our belts before the park got crowded. We got diverted by the wave pool - Cassidy decided she liked this one because the waves didn't knock her down. Next we did Snow Stormers again - just as much fun as the other day. As we were exiting the slide, Cassidy said her tummy hurt. I figured she had swallowed too much water on an empty stomach and she said all she wanted to do was get back in the creek and relax. So we got a tube and she curled up in my lap and we floated back to our chairs. I wrapped her up in the towels and went to find some food. When I got back to the chairs, Cassidy was asleep - I should have known then that this was a bad sign. I sat down and let her sleep - when she woke up she just wanted to go back to the room. I convinced her to eat a little something and see if that helped her feel better - no luck. So, we packed up our stuff and headed back to Dixie Landings.

Cassidy climbed right into bed and slept most of the day. She woke up long enough to watch a movie and eat a croissant and then went back to sleep. I must have made 50 trips over to the food court for ice tea - I was going stir crazy. I did get us all packed up, figuring if she felt better in the morning, at least we'd have a few hours in a park before we had to leave for the airport.

Day 6: June 20,1999 - Resort, Travel

Cassidy was still not feeling well this morning, so I figured we'd take it easy and relax around the resort. After running her through the shower, she fell back to sleep and I called to ask for a late check-out. No sense in making her feel worse by dragging her off someplace. About 11:45, she woke up and said she felt well enough to walk over and get a hair wrap. I closed up the bags and put in a call to have the luggage picked up. We walked over to the hair wrap stand and Cassidy got in line. I walked into the lobby to let them know we were out of the room and get a final copy of the bill. When I got back to Cassidy, the second girl doing the wraps was leaving and there were 2 girls ahead of Cassidy in line. I asked how long it would take to get to Cassidy and the estimate was about 40 minutes - since Brian was going to be picking us up at 1:00 and it was already 12:15, Cassidy didn't get her hair wrapped. As we walked away, I think I was more upset then she was, since this was something she really wanted and I had made her wait until later in the week to get it done. Oh well, next time.

We walked around a little and checked out Fulton's General Store before we walked out front to wait for Brian. He was just pulling up as we were about to sit down, so I went over to greet him and told him I just needed to get our bags from luggage services. Cassidy waited in the car while I got the bags and then we were off to the airport.

Our flight home was uneventful - and Scott was waiting for us when we landed. Cassidy returned to her old self on the plane and was very happy to see daddy when she got off the plane. I was already starting to plan our next trip :-)

Summary

This was a very different trip for us - first because it was just Cassidy and me and second because it was so laid back. This really did work for us and neither of us was disappointed to not get to see and do everything - I guess it's knowing that there will be a next time for everything.
I've fallen in love with Dixie Landings. I loved walking and biking around the grounds. Cassidy and I also liked the room décor more than at Port Orleans - I think we both just felt more relaxed in the rustic surroundings of Alligator Bayou then in the city elegance of Port Orleans.
For the most part, I didn't mind not having a car. I have learned to give myself plenty of time to make scheduled events - a lesson I'm sure to forget many times. I think I may have joined the legion of folks who swear by forsaking a rental car, but I won't be sure for several more visits.
This was the second trip we've made where I didn't make Priority Seating arrangements for each day and I'm now sure this is the right way for us. We enjoyed grabbing a bite to eat when the urge hit - fortunately, our 'late' schedule generally had our tummies growling at off-hours. Unfortunately, we did allow balanced nutrition to be cast aside.
Aileen Toner

ace213@erols.com

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