Trip Report It's a Jolly Holiday! *COMPLETED*

I am often asked, "What is your favorite time of year to go to Disney World?"

I used to answer late spring ~ warm but not miserable, little to no rain, manageable crowds. Then in 2009, I discovered the splendor of Disney of Christmastime ~ and have made an annual visit since. Now those of you who read the countdown thread might be thinking, "Hey, didn't you go last February?" Well, yes. "April?" Spring Break, of course. "June?" Had to celebrate the start of summer. "August?" Had to celebrate the end of summer. "September?" When your adult son asks you to go with him, you go! "November?" Quick getaway to celebrate DH's milestone birthday.

Which brings us back to....December!

(In case you think my frequency borders on lunacy, let me say I have fine company with @lostpro9het, @b33b33, @Doc Disney, @samantha788 and @gwhb75, among others .)

I have a love/hate relationship with going to WDW in December. While I LOVE being there, I HATE having one less week at home to decorate, shop, wrap presents, send Christmas cards, bake cookies, etc. And since this year we were due to arrive home on Christmas Eve, I needed to have everything ready for Christmas dinner too. Why don't I just eliminate a few things? Can't. Won't. I am under the curse of perfectionism! So I rush around like a mad woman for 3 weeks in order to have BOTH a perfect vacation AND a perfect Christmas!

This is probably a good time to confess that my Christmas tree is NOT perfect. You see, two summers ago we adopted an adorable kitten named Poly (yes, we named her after our favorite resort .) She is strictly an indoor cat. Having had cats before, we were surprised to discover that our new addition enjoyed climbing both our Christmas trees. Multiple times per day. Now last year this was merely a minor inconvenience, since Poly was still a kitten and didn't weigh much (read: she didn't cause much damage.) This year? Completely different story!! Bent branches, broken ornaments...on any given day, we didn't know what was going to end up as collateral damage next.

Can you spot her? For reference, we have 9 foot ceilings.

And here she is in the living room tree:

Anyhoo, I was able to complete all my Christmas and Disney preparations by December 16...the next morning we would start our Jolly Holiday!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Great report so far. I love Disney at any time, but like you I think it is a little extra special at Christmastime.

 

[Pooh'sBuddy]

mmmmm. Mickey waffles with strawberries and whipped cream! Yummy! And I wear a watch, too.

 

[Tuvalu]

Saturday (con't)
As we walked outside onto the porch of LTT, we caught the end of Mickey's Once Upon A Christmastime parade. This is the MVMCP parade ~ once the final MVMCP is over for the season, Festival of Fantasy (or whatever is the usual 3 p.m. parade is) is replaced by Once Upon A Christmastime (through the New Year). The parade runs twice daily.

The Big Guy himself:

Next we sat through a full house showing of Tiki Birds ~ you know MK is very crowded when all the benches in the Tiki Room are taken! Tikis have always been one of Woody's favorite attractions (he has poster art on his office wall) and he was very happy when the original show returned after the demise of "Under New Management." (Is there a more obnoxious voice than Iago's??!!)

We used our final FP on another Jingle Cruise. The fastpass line stretched almost to Aladdin's Magic Carpets! It was worth the wait:

Em really enjoyed all the decorations and the punny jokes .

We made our way out of Adventureland to Main Street and perused the shops. The three of us began to feel a little claustrophobic due to the number of people, and decided a break was in order. Woody returned to WL for a nap while Em and I boarded the monorail to resort hop.

She and I intended to get off at the Contemporary and see the gingerbread display, but as the monorail pulled in we noticed the platform was so full of people that the line stretched all the way to the escalator ~ and we did not feel like waiting in that line once we were through visiting! So we remained on the monorail.

The Poly wasn't a whole lot better ~ that platform was also full, but we disembarked anyway. We went into the Great Ceremonial House in search of Christmas cheer. While the lower level was pretty, we agreed that the Poly is lacking in holiday festivity (remember the Christmas tree pic?) We decided to check out the snack options in Captain Cooks, but that place was a madhouse (at 2:30 in the afternoon!) Instead, we walked outside so that Em could see the construction changes since her last visit.

We should have just walked from the Poly to the GF (if you have never made this walk, it is very picturesque), but we rode the monorail. The GF was all decked out!

As we looked down on the lobby from the second level, we saw a bride preparing to be photographed in front of the tree. Assisting her was Richard, an 80-something cast member who works as a greeter at the GF, as a footman for weddings and as a ride assistant in Fantasyland. We look forward to "Richard sightings" on all our vacations.

We also had a "Teddy Bear Lady" sighting. This woman brings her bears every day to the GF and sits quietly on either the upper or lower level of the main building. I have heard that she will engage in pleasant conversation with those who speak to her, but I have never had the courage to approach her.

Em and I were thirsty, so we made our way to Gasparillas, snapping a few photos along the way:

Lack of sleep was taking a toll on Em as evidenced by this pic:

A little hydration perked us up and we texted Woody to meet us at DHS.

 

[LisaBelle]

Count me in with the watch wearers. I will definitely miss the clocks in the resort rooms. Love LTT but have only been there for dinner. Have never had the Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake, but want it right now!! The waffles with strawberries are my favorite WL breakfast. Yummmmm!

 

[MinnieM123]

I awakened wide-eyed at 5 a.m. Now at first I did not know what time it was, since there are no longer clocks in resort rooms!!! Call me old-fashioned, but I LIKE clocks. I like being able to glance at a nightstand clock and immediately know what time it is. I don't want to sleep with my phone next to me and drowsily fumble for the on button in order to check the time.

(Know what else? I wear a watch. There ~ I said it. I am a Baby Boomer who wears a watch. Who's with me??!

Rant alert: Removing the clocks is just infuriating to me. (There was an active thread about this a few months ago in News & Rumors.) I'm in the minority, I guess, as I don't carry a smartphone and would like to have a clock on the nightstand. I also believe that even people who use smartphones, won't want to have to get up to see the time on their phone, if it's plugged in charging, across the room from their bed. Having a clock with the time lit up would be a convenience for most guests. The clocks were very low maintenance, and there was no reason to remove them. (Years ago, I worked for a hotel company and guest room clocks lasted for years and years.)

I also wear a watch (I have a bunch of different styles) and will continue to do so. End of rant.

On to happier things: How fun that you caught a sighting of Teddy Bear Lady. I've only seen her in pictures. As for Richard, I met him (briefly) once. What a gracious person he is. (If I'm not mistaken, I think he's been there since the hotel opened.)

Oh, I really like the outdoor reindeer pictures; I don't think anyone has photographed those before. The Grand is such a beautiful property, and most people take pictures indoors (which is understandable). But it was nice to see a few pictures of the lovely grounds outside as well.

 

[Tuvalu]

I forgot to include a picture of the GF gingerbread house:

My brother and his wife discovered the GF chocolate-backed gingerbread shingles while on their honeymoon several years ago. He always requests that I bring him back a couple. A single shingle (say that three times fast) used to be around $6, including tax. Now a single shingle is nearly $9, including tax. He says they are worth every penny. However at this moment two shingles were not worth my time...the line to purchase treats was wrapped around the entire house. I told Em I would come back later in the week to buy the shingles. We had a Studios bus to catch!

We met Woody just inside the park entrance. Em had been looking forward to this night for months ~ she is an Osborne Lights fanatic! (Note her shirt in my previous post. It is the AP "It's A Wrap" Osborne Lights shirt; I bought it for her on my November visit and "wrapped" it for her birthday .)

Though we had almost an hour and a half before the switch was flipped, we were leery of doing any attraction in case we ended up delayed. That first moment when the lights are turned on takes our breath away and seeing it happen is a MUST. We found a table at Studio Catering Co. and hung out there to pass the time.

Then. It. Happened.

Em had tears in her eyes. So did her mama.

Upon reading his trip report, I learned that @lostpro9het and his family were standing in the exact area we were when the lights turned on. It's probably best they didn't see us "Weepy Wandas" .

We wandered around the Streets of America taking in the Spectacle. I showed Em a few "hidden" gems I had discovered last month. We had to search again for the purple cat because it had been moved! Several songs and snowflakes later we said goodbye (for now) to the Osborne Lights. We had a dinner ADR to make!

We arrived at Mama Melrose right on time. The lobby was full of people and walk-ins were being turned away. We knew immediately we were in for a wait.

Several minutes passed before any names were called. Then a hostess announced, "Holyfield, party of 3."
No takers.
Again, "Holyfield, party of 3."
Nobody moved.
Hostess repeated a third time, "Holyfield, party of 3."
Em looked at me and her dad and said, "I can be Evander."

When it was apparent there were no Holyfields in the house, the hostess moved on to the next name on the list. Which just happened to be ours.

Em and I shared the chicken parm and chicken campanella; she also had a margarita. Truth be told, it was a Mama's margarita (which Em had loved during our June vacation) that was the catalyst for making this ADR. Once again, the margarita did not disappoint. Woody enjoyed his flatbread; I *think* we both had wine.

We could not believe the steady stream of people flocking to the Osborne Lights as we left Mama Melrose. Any thoughts we had of taking another peek tonight were quickly discarded. Besides, we still had a few minutes before Fantasmic would let out, meaning the bus area would not be a madhouse yet. We headed for the buses.

Since we did not have dessert after dinner, we thought a cupcake from Roaring Fork would hit the spot:

The cupcake took away a little of my disappointment of not seeing fireworks tonight. Holiday Wishes was now at 8 p.m. for the remainder of our trip and we weren't back in our room until after 9.

Fireworks count: 4 shows, 3 nights

 

[HouCuseChickie]

They really need to fix the water situation on PotC. I think about rides where I normally stow my camera and phone for protection and this normally wouldn't be one of them. Also love seeing the Trader Samta pic. DL's Jingle Cruise did not have him dressed up, so I was kind of sad that he was just Trader Sam. Nice to see Lynn and her teddy bears at the GF too

 

[lostpro9het]

Upon reading his trip report, I learned that @lostpro9het and his family were standing in the exact area we were when the lights turned on. It's probably best they didn't see us "Weepy Wandas" .

Its amazing how small The World is! Also, I wouldn't judge the Wandas in mid-weep.

 

[Gabe1]

Rant alert: Removing the clocks is just infuriating to me. (There was an active thread about this a few months ago in News & Rumors.) I'm in the minority, I guess, as I don't carry a smartphone and would like to have a clock on the nightstand. I also believe that even people who use smartphones, won't want to have to get up to see the time on their phone, if it's plugged in charging, across the room from their bed. Having a clock with the time lit up would be a convenience for most guests. The clocks were very low maintenance, and there was no reason to remove them. (Years ago, I worked for a hotel company and guest room clocks lasted for years and years.)

I also wear a watch (I have a bunch of different styles) and will continue to do so. End of rant.

On to happier things: How fun that you caught a sighting of Teddy Bear Lady. I've only seen her in pictures. As for Richard, I met him (briefly) once. What a gracious person he is. (If I'm not mistaken, I think he's been there since the hotel opened.)

Oh, I really like the outdoor reindeer pictures; I don't think anyone has photographed those before. The Grand is such a beautiful property, and most people take pictures indoors (which is understandable). But it was nice to see a few pictures of the lovely grounds outside as well.

And I dug my trusty travel alarm out similar to this. Wonder if carry on screeners even know what these are these days after most hotel rooms provide basic digital alarm clocks. I remember Disney upgrading from alarm clocks to apple product docking stations. Subsequently Apple going to the lightning cords pretty much negating the upgrade coupled with guests using different platform phones.

 

[Tuvalu]

Sunday, December 20
I managed to actually make it to 6 a.m. before awakening today. I left my sleeping family to get breakfast, but arrived at Roaring Fork before the grill opened so I continued on to the lobby to enjoy the majestic tree in the quietness of the morning.

I brought waffles and an egg croissant sandwich up to our room. After eating, we gathered our things and headed to the bus stop...back to the Studios we go!

Despite the huge security lines, we were in the park in less than 10 minutes. We always hear lots of grumbling and sighing in security lines (and I myself am guilty of trying to pick what I perceive to be the "fastest" line), but the reality is the process is not as time-consuming as our brains believe. I think we are all impatient to get to the fun!

Speaking of fun, cast members with light sabers were lined up along Hollywood Blvd. enthusiastically greeting arriving guests:

I do miss the opening show they used to do here, but the Star Wars greeting was a nice touch.

Our first destination was The Great Movie Ride. We walked the queue without having to stop. Woody would really like to see all of the new pre-show movie (TCM is his go-to channel) but he will probably have to YouTube it since we have yet to see more than about a 5-7 minute snippet.

We sat directly behind the driver of the front two cars, so you know what that means...
Western scene!

Years ago, we rode this ride at least a half dozen times before we even knew the Western sketch existed. Gangster is done by default ~ you only have a chance to experience Western if all 4 cars are operating (and you sit in either the first or second car.)

Next we laughed along with Statler and Waldorf. More accurately, AT Statler and Waldorf. If you have never sat through a showing of Muppet Vision 3D watching ONLY Statler and Waldorf, I highly recommend you do. You will gain an ever greater appreciation for the detail of this attraction. (The same advice applies to watching ONLY Max, Buff and Melvin at Country Bear Jamboree. They're hysterical!)

We split up for our first set of fastpasses ~ Woody and Em went to ride a very fast car to the Forum, while I went to have some Rootin' Tootin' Fun.

I passed this sign on my way:

And now I'm here:

Why would I gave bothered to take a picture of this? Hmmm, take a guess...

 

[Tuvalu]

Forgot to include two of Em's great shots from GMR:

I reunited with Woody and Em at our next FP, Voyage of the Little Mermaid. This show is a childhood favorite for Em ~ Woody used to take her when I took her older brothers on Tower of Terror. I don't think I saw this show until Em was 11 or 12, and I was captivated by the opening number:

Yay for the turtle!

When the show let out, I asked Woody if he wanted to check out Launch Bay. He politely declined, knowing that his female companions had zero interest in going inside (yeah, we are part of the small minority not obsessed with Star Wars.) We walked around instead:

This garland decorated the gift store at the end of Sunset Blvd:

If you go to the World during the holiday season, always check out the garland you see. It will be themed to the location where it is placed. Disney magic!

Soon it was time for our final FP at Tower of Terror. Remember I said that Woody would take Em to Little Mermaid while I rode ToT with her brothers? That's because she was traumatized by riding ToT at the age of 4 ("I am NEVER riding THAT again!!!!") Yes, we took a 4-year-old on ToT...she was tall enough, and curious, and had the peer pressure from big brothers...suffice it to say she did not regain her courage to try it again until she was 12.

And then she LOVED it!

We were hungry once we were safely on the ground outside The Hollywood Tower Hotel. It had been a long time since we dined at Sunset Ranch Market, mainly because all the tables are outdoors and we prefer to eat in the comfort of a/c when it is 85 degrees with 100% humidity. Today, however, was perfect for dining al fresco. We all had the BBQ pork wedge salad (see, BBQ again!) and each of us rated it two thumbs up!! It was a delicious blend of flavors and large enough to satisfy. The vanilla cake with chocolate custard (pictured above the salad) was a thumbs down.

The masses had descended on DHS, and we agreed it was time to return to WL.

 

[Gabe1]

What a Hoot! I just love this elderly, tiny CM you captured in your photo. A smile on her face and yet you can tell that Saber is a challenge for her. Priceless.

 

[Tuvalu]

Woody and Em decided naps were in order while I did some reconnaissance work for the Wilderness Lodge DVC Additions thread on the WDW Park News, Rumors and Current Events forum. I posted my pictures there, but will also include them here.

This is the seating area behind the pool bar. I turned slightly to take the next pic, which is where the refurbishment fence begins:

And continues along the walkway between the Lodge and Villas:

I peeked through the fence:

This is the bike rental & marina and kids playground:

Lastly, the former Hidden Springs pool area:

I am sure it looks even different now, since these pictures are 6 weeks old.

 

[Tuvalu]

Em was awake when I returned to our room and we decided to peruse The Mercantile:

Santa Goofy and Pluto were having a Meet and Greet in the lobby, but we could not get close enough for a picture. After our browsing, we thought we'd attempt to see the Frozen gingerbread display at the Contemporary again. It is so convenient to be able to take a direct boat to the Contemporary from the WL.

We're here!

I purchased a chocolate cookie with crushed peppermint for Drumr (middle son). I had picked one up for him last year when I visited this display and he really enjoyed it.

Em and I wandered through the shops before boarding the monorail. We were to meet Woody at The Plaza for dinner.

Hello, Toy Soldier!

Honestly, can you ever get enough of this?!?

(Photos by Em, of course!)

The Plaza is one of our usual haunts. A few of the servers even know us by name . We did not take any food pics, but you can safely assume there was a round of chocolate shakes with the meal.

We finished dinner in time to watch Celebrate The Magic immediately followed by Holiday Wishes. Though the MK was open until 1 a.m., there were far too many people in the park for our liking.

Goodnight, MK!

Fireworks count: 5 shows, 4 nights

 

[Mindy16]

Love your TR! I do prefer Christmas Disney, it's so festive

 

[Gabe1]

Woody and Em decided naps were in order while I did some reconnaissance work for the Wilderness Lodge DVC Additions thread on the WDW Park News, Rumors and Current Events forum. I posted my pictures there, but will also include them here.
View attachment 129710
This is the seating area behind the pool bar. I turned slightly to take the next pic, which is where the refurbishment fence begins:
View attachment 129711
And continues along the walkway between the Lodge and Villas:
View attachment 129712
I peeked through the fence:
View attachment 129713
This is the bike rental & marina and kids playground:
View attachment 129714
Lastly, the former Hidden Springs pool area:
View attachment 129715
View attachment 129716

I am sure it looks even different now, since these pictures are 6 weeks old.

I understand refurbishments, additions and sometimes different theming (not the Poly though.) Still when I look at bulldozed pools and playgrounds and beautiful tree landscaping that has matured nicely I can't help but be a bit sad. 40+ square miles you think Disney could create a new DVC elsewhere rather than upset the shoreline yet again. Pretty soon it is going to be similar to the World Showcase where guests are hard pressed to see water without having lunch in a restaurant. Disappointing.

Love your pictures of the construction!

 

[MinnieM123]

I understand refurbishments, additions and sometimes different theming (not the Poly though.) Still when I look at bulldozed pools and playgrounds and beautiful tree landscaping that has matured nicely I can't help but be a bit sad. 40+ square models you think Disney could create a new DVC elsewhere rather than upset the shoreline yet again. Pretty soon it is going to be similar to the World Showcase where guests are hard pressed to see water without having lunch in a restaurant. Disappointing.

Love your pictures of the construction!

I agree with all of this 100%. Seems like they're replacing beautiful vistas with an end product of congestion. Ugh.

 

[Tuvalu]

Monday, December 21
Another round of Mickey waffles for breakfast this morning (does that make us waffleholics?) Em opted for chocolate chip (no worse than a chocolate chip muffin, right?) But the waffle joy did not last long; it was quickly replaced by transportation frustration!

Our plan was to go to Epcot. We usually drive to Epcot when staying at WL, because we don't like having to pick up passengers at Ft. Wilderness when we take the bus. In the mornings, WL guests can nearly fill an Epcot bus, resulting in a slow load at the campground as even more families try to cram on. I feel badly for the campers since none can ever get a seat, and many are left stranded at the bus stop when there is no more room on the bus.

DISNEY, FT. WILDERNESS GUESTS NEED THEIR OWN EPCOT BUS!!!!!

So why did we choose to ride the bus this morning? If you are familiar with George Costanza from Seinfeld, you may recall the episode when he refused to drive his car because he was parked in the perfect spot and he did not want to lose it. When Woody and I arrived at WL on Friday, we parked in a space at the beginning of a row. Knowing we were going to have to schlep our belongings out to the car on departure day, I declared we weren't going to drive anywhere this trip...which suited Woody fine, as he detests driving and would rather use Disney transport.

The monitor at the bus stop said the Epcot bus was due in 10 minutes...11 minutes....12 minutes. The time kept changing. Buses for every other destination arrived and departed, some more than once. Finally we saw an Epcot bus headed our way! Wait...what is that bus behind it? Another Epcot bus?! And the bus following Epcot bus #2? Well that would be Epcot bus #3!

All of us going to Epcot boarded bus #1, filling every available seat. The driver pulled away, and Epcot buses #2 and #3 did not even stop to load. Suddenly our driver circled back around to the bus stop...did we forget something? No ~ our driver was merely allowing the other two Epcot buses to get in front of us. So now we are stuck behind those buses at the light at Timberline Drive...and the light turned red before we were able to turn.

Now common sense would say that since there are two empty Epcot buses ahead of us, and since our bus is full, our bus should bypass the Ft. Wilderness stop. BUT NOOOO!!! Our driver turned into the campground, where we had to wait as the other two Epcot buses loaded. Not a sole was left at the bus stop, yet our driver still pulled over for a few moments.

The fun wasn't done. When we arrived (at last!) at Epcot, our driver dropped us off in the middle of the furthest bus lot, in a space reserved for off-property buses! .

 

[MinnieM123]

Monday, December 21
Another round of Mickey waffles for breakfast this morning (does that make us waffleholics?) Em opted for chocolate chip (no worse than a chocolate chip muffin, right?) But the waffle joy did not last long; it was quickly replaced by transportation frustration!

Our plan was to go to Epcot. We usually drive to Epcot when staying at WL, because we don't like having to pick up passengers at Ft. Wilderness when we take the bus. In the mornings, WL guests can nearly fill an Epcot bus, resulting in a slow load at the campground as even more families try to cram on. I feel badly for the campers since none can ever get a seat, and many are left stranded at the bus stop when there is no more room on the bus.

DISNEY, FT. WILDERNESS GUESTS NEED THEIR OWN EPCOT BUS!!!!!

So why did we choose to ride the bus this morning? If you are familiar with George Costanza from Seinfeld, you may recall the episode when he refused to drive his car because he was parked in the perfect spot and he did not want to lose it. When Woody and I arrived at WL on Friday, we parked in a space at the beginning of a row. Knowing we were going to have to schlep our belongings out to the car on departure day, I declared we weren't going to drive anywhere this trip...which suited Woody fine, as he detests driving and would rather use Disney transport.

The monitor at the bus stop said the Epcot bus was due in 10 minutes...11 minutes....12 minutes. The time kept changing. Buses for every other destination arrived and departed, some more than once. Finally we saw an Epcot bus headed our way! Wait...what is that bus behind it? Another Epcot bus?! And the bus following Epcot bus #2? Well that would be Epcot bus #3!

All of us going to Epcot boarded bus #1, filling every available seat. The driver pulled away, and Epcot buses #2 and #3 did not even stop to load. Suddenly our driver circled back around to the bus stop...did we forget something? No ~ our driver was merely allowing the other two Epcot buses to get in front of us. So now we are stuck behind those buses at the light at Timberline Drive...and the light turned red before we were able to turn.

Now common sense would say that since there are two empty Epcot buses ahead of us, and since our bus is full, our bus should bypass the Ft. Wilderness stop. BUT NOOOO!!! Our driver turned into the campground, where we had to wait as the other two Epcot buses loaded. Not a sole was left at the bus stop, yet our driver still pulled over for a few moments.

The fun wasn't done. When we arrived (at last!) at Epcot, our driver dropped us off in the middle of the furthest bus lot, in a space reserved for off-property buses! .

Aw heck, that sounds like just a normal day for me, commuting with the city buses (and trains) to and from work! Schedule? What schedule? Drop off location? What drop off location?

 

[Tuvalu]

After our aggravating bus experience, we were greeted by a mass of humanity at the security checkpoint. Before FP+, I would have been worried we would not make it to The Land early enough to get a decent-time paper FP for Soarin'. Today I was relaxed, knowing our FP was already secured.

We still headed for The Land pavilion first, happy to discover there was no wait for Living With The Land. We boarded our boat and enjoyed the special holiday touches added throughout the ride.

We disembarked and walked towards Soarin' since our FP window had opened. Look at the standby wait!

Yes, a three hour standby wait!!!

We thought we would sail through the fastpass line. We were wrong. It was 25 minutes before we reached the second Mickey head touch point. We did "have a nice flight"...our last one until "Soarin' Around the World" opens.

We had some time to kill before our Spaceship Earth FP and walked over to The Seas pavilion...which was closed! Turned around and headed for Figment...but we weren't going to wait 30 minutes to ride it. We saw signage for the Pixar short films in the Magic Eye Theater so we decided on that ~ only to be told by a cast member the attraction would not open until "Wednesday, hopefully." So frustrating!

We went to MouseGear instead. Us and 1,000 of our closest friends. Uggh.

Even the FP line for SSE extended beyond the regular queue (standby wait 50 minutes). We did not have any lunch plans, as we thought we'd try a World Showcase quick serve location. But the thought of waiting in a long line for take-out did not appeal to Em ~ she began to feel the beginning of a cold/sore throat coming on. As we continued to wait in the SSE FP line, Em checked restaurant availability on her phone and booked us a noon ADR at San Angel Inn.

We then began our time travel: