The Making of Disney Dreams and Christmas Memories: A December 2008 Trip Report

HollyBelle · Dec 29, 2008

After Kathy found out that the room still wasn’t ready, we decided to head over to Epcot for a little bit.

The Yacht Club Pier, as seen from our walk over to Epcot:

France from the International Gateway:

We spent some time in the UK playing around, saw the tail end of Nowell’s performance in Canada, and then headed over to The Seas with Nemo and Friends which was our first ride of the trip, followed by Spaceship Earth.

Picturesque England:

Phone booth fun:

Nowell in Canada:

The Seas Signage:

The SSE Mural, which Brett was very relieved to see unchanged during the refurb a while back:

After a quick stop to experience the craziness and chaos at MouseGear we headed back to the International Gateway. For some odd reason an unbelievable number of birds (seagulls, I believe) were dive bombing and leaving presents all over the walkways throughout Canada and most of England. Kathy and I laughed nervously at the thought of being target practice and I had visions of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” while moving briskly through the area. Seriously though... where'd they all come from? That's what I want to know!

EPCOT Explorer · Dec 29, 2008

Very nice! Love the EPCOT Shots.

HollyBelle · Dec 29, 2008

Thanks EPCOT Explorer... it is only the best park ever!

HollyBelle · Dec 29, 2008

Just after 4pm we arrived back at OKW with the green light to enter our room. It was refreshing to finally get in and get the cars unloaded. As we were carting stuff inside a couple walking by said “Welcome to the Neighborhood.” And it really did feel like such, with the quaint buildings and ability to park just outside your door. We were also lucky enough to be just steps away from the common area and lighthouse pool. I’ve read about the grandness of the OKW villas, but wasn’t prepared for just how large the living area was going to be. We had a great second floor room (the entrance was accessed by its own stairwell) with a view of the tree lined golf course from all the windows and the very expansive covered balcony.

Old Key West Room 1222 (up top):

You can see the architectural style and pastels better on this villa, which was just next door:

Living Area:

Kitchen:

Master Bedroom:

Bedroom 2:

We all took some time to relax and unpack our suitcases. Brett, Derek and I went down to the Gurgling Suitcase to enjoy a drink and I wandered around the property taking some pictures while Kathy and Danny finished getting ready for dinner. I liked the Gurgling Suitcase… if it were just a bit larger, it would have looked and felt exactly like the kind of place you would find if you wandered off the beaten path a little ways from the famous Duval Street in Old Town, Key West.

The Gurgling Suitcase Signage:

Conch Flats General Store:

The near empty corridor between the Registration building and Olivia’s Café, a much different sight than earlier when the place was crawling with people:

The registration seating/waiting area was a beautiful library stocked with the likes of Hemingway, of course:

HollyBelle · Dec 29, 2008

Once at Downtown Disney, we strolled around the area for a bit before heading over to Fulton’s Crab House for our dinner reservations. We were seated upstairs almost immediately. The views of Saratoga Springs from some of the window seats were amazing; it’s too bad we weren’t sitting at one! Dinner was just okay in my opinion, and I think the rest of my party is in agreement with that. To be honest, when factoring expectation and value into the equation, this meal rates as my least favorite overall for this trip. It was simply nothing to write home about. All of our entrees were good, but none of them were great. The clam chowder and lobster bisque were the best parts of the meal. For the price and reputation, Fulton's should have delivered the best and freshest seafood ever, which they didn't.

A great shot Derek captured of Fulton’s:

Derek, Danny and Kathy trying to keep their eyes open before dinner:

Brett and I looking a bit worn out:

As you can tell from the pictures, we were a very tired bunch. The original plan was to head over to the Studios after dinner to spend some time enjoying the Osborne Lights, but at some point we all decided it would be best to get some rest and wake up refreshed for our first full Disney day. So after a little shopping at the Marketplace, it was back to Old Key West 1222.

We passed this “sidewalk artist” on the way out:

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

Day 2: Animal Kingdom/Resort Relaxing/Magic Kingdom

Monday morning we woke up and headed over to the AK Rainforest Café for breakfast before entering the park. Unbeknownst to us (because we didn’t take the time to find out) the restaurant didn’t open until 8:30 am so we took some pictures and waited around until then. This caused us to miss out on the morning extra magic hours which was unfortunate. Breakfast was good, but the tonga toast at the Rainforest Café can’t even compete with Kona’s. There’s absolutely no comparison.

Brett and his Mama in front of the AK tree (this year it wins my award for “favorite park tree”):

Rainforest Signage:

One tree frog, extra large:

Derek and Kathy:

I believe Brett was looking to be adopted by the many gorillas around us (keep your eyes peeled, this won’t be the last time you’ll see gorilla faces during the trip):

Brett and I were itching to get in the park and meet some characters so we excused ourselves from breakfast a little early and made our way to Discovery Island, where Eeyore and Tigger were awaiting us.

Uponastar · Dec 30, 2008

Great report so far, Holly!
OKW looks beautiful!

We were there Dec.15-22!
Looking forward to more of your report.

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

We met up with everyone else and headed to Dinoland, USA. Derek recently had minor surgery and all is well; however, he was to steer clear of the more intense rides, so he unfortunately had to bypass many throughout the trip. So while Danny, Brett and I rode Dinosaur, Kathy and Derek met up with Pluto and Goofy.

This sign really sits back in the trees, I think this is the first time I’ve ever even noticed it:

Dinosaur:

Pluto and Goofy enjoying a Dinoland Christmas:

An extinct Christmas tree:

And the cheerful orange Brontosaurus watching over Dinorama:

After Dinorama we made our way towards Expedition Everest. Brett grabbed fastpasses for all of us but Derek and then some confusion ensued as we tried to decide whether we should go standby or single rider. Single rider won out and Kathy chose to bypass this expedition and just join us when our fastpass return time came up. Standing in the single rider line, Brett and I spied the Dream Squad entering the EE unload zone. 5 minutes later as I was being loaded onto a train I looked back and noticed that all three of us had made the same one. As soon as the ride was over and the train pulled up to the exit area 5 or 6 Dream Squad members began clapping and shouting that we were all winners. They handed out AK Dream Fastpasses to everyone on the train!!!

Yeti Monument:

Beware of Yeti:

AK Dream Fastpasses; it appears that Brett was so excited he couldn’t stop looking at his:

So after winning our fastpasses a bit of gloating took place as we all headed towards Africa. What can you do, brothers will be brothers; it was all in good fun. On the way we stopped for a picture in front of the crazy legged statue outside Yak & Yeti. It actually made for a great photo op:

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

Uponastar said:
Great report so far, Holly!
OKW looks beautiful!

We were there Dec.15-22!
Looking forward to more of your report.

Thank you! The pictures from your trip are wonderful!

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

We headed for the standby line at the safari and when a cast member saw our fastpass lanyards he tried to direct us towards the FP return queue. We told him we were getting in standby so that we could all ride together and he said “That’s okay… all of you go over there and tell them Dave sent you.” So we went to see just how much pull Dave had… and apparently it was enough, as the cast member checking return times just smiled and waved us in. So thanks Dave for the dream moment!

The safari was really enjoyable and we had a great guide. Although I didn’t get any good animal shots this time, I did catch a few of the ride vehicles:

We followed the path to the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail once we exited the safari. It’s been quite a while since I’ve been on the exploration trail, and now I remember why; for whatever reason it’s nowhere near the top of my AK list.

We did find a meerkat standing tall:

A chalkboard filled with gorilla anatomy:

The bridge Jafar sits off to the right of (my favorite area of the trail):

And Jafar hiding in the boulder under the foliage… one of the coolest "hidden characters" found in the parks:

Following the trail, Derek went to the Maharajah Jungle Trek while the rest of us returned to Everest for our fastpass time. He got some great shots of the tigers… this one was my favorite:

And for some crazy reason (probably poor planning on my part when making our dining reservations) Brett, Derek and I had to get over to the MK for lunch reservations at the Liberty Tree Tavern, so we took off while Danny and Kathy stayed to get some quick service lunch and capitalize on the dream fastpasses.

wvdisneyfamily · Dec 30, 2008

I love all of the pictures! Keep them coming. :sohappy:

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

Thanks wvdisneyfamily. I'm trying to get the whole thing posted by the end of the week!

DormaNesbit · Dec 30, 2008

Great trip report so far and OKW is our family's favorite!

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

While having lunch at Liberty Tree, we debated over whether to spend the afternoon in the Magic Kingdom or go back to the resort and enjoy the pool. The resort won out because we figured we’d have a better chance at walking on rides later that night during EMH’s.

When we got back to OKW, Brett and I donned our running gear and took off to explore the resort on foot. It really is a beautiful property; it’s quite large and spread out with villas in small clusters, and although some might see this as a bad thing, I liked the community feel. Plus we found a great jogging path (accessed between villas 54 and 55) that ran along the edge of the golf course and followed the channel to DTD.

After our run, Brett and I headed down to the pool to meet up with the others. The main pool has a great slide which the guys couldn’t stay off of. I personally found the hot tub more to my liking! And the lighthouse serves as a sauna, which I wasn't aware of until now.

After relaxing at the pool we all got ready for dinner and MK extra magic hours. We were going back to DTD to have dinner at T-Rex and I wanted to take the boat over so Brett and I left a good 45 minutes before everyone else to get over there and check us all in. Funny thing is that they only arrived at T-Rex 5 minutes after us! That’s okay though, I really did enjoy the boat ride. I found it hilarious that as we passed under one of the bridges just before Saratoga Springs the music on the boat switched from Jimmy Buffett (one of our favorite artists) to what I would describe as big band music, keeping with the themed surroundings.

The Azalea Bloom:

Olivia’s and company from the water:

The lighthouse:

And a self portrait (we got this one fairly centered...after about 5 tries!):

One of the Treehouse Villas under construction (Kathy is very excited for these because they’ll be considered a part of SSR… meaning we’ll probably get to stay there soon!):

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

DormaNesbit said:
Great trip report so far and OKW is our family's favorite!

Thanks! I can certainly see why OKW makes the top of your list... it's lovely! And quickly moving up my own resort list.

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

We arrived at T-Rex around 6:15pm and were seated immediately. The place is huge and probably had more open tables than not; however, by the time we were on our way out, it was full. It was definitely a fun dining experience. Brett was very excited to try it out, much more so than I was, but I guess that has to do with his childhood love of dinos and my indifference towards them!

The restaurant has four dining rooms: the ice room, fire room, aquarium, and forest. Unfortunately, we were seated in the forest, which most resembles the Rainforest Cafe where we’ve eaten a countless number of times. The food was good; and although different, the menu does bear a close resemblance to the one at Rainforest. Brett was thoroughly enjoying the names of menu items and I’m starting to think he ordered the ribs just so he could ask for the “Mega Mess-O-bones!!” Kathy had the “Lava Flow,” which I believe was some sort of daiquiri/pina colada blend. The only ingredient we can be sure it had is alcohol… and a lot of it!

Signage:

A baby pterodactyl on the outdoor menu:

T-Rex’s version of the purple elephant... a clothed orange dino with an Indiana Jones hat:

The Shark Aquarium Bar (very cool… but I’m partial to the animal bottoms):

Parasaurolophus’ (say that three times fast!):

Snowy wooly mammoth babies:

And big Mama Wooly Mammoth:

The restaurants namesake encased in a glacier:

And last but not least… Kathy enjoying her “Lava Flow”:

HollyBelle · Dec 30, 2008

After dinner we went straight to the car and over to MK for EMH. We arrived just as SpectroMagic was beginning and we were herded across the street to the Emporium between floats. Brett and I don’t usually take time to watch the parades, as they just aren’t high on our priority list. But I consider SpectroMagic to be an exception and I think more than anything it’s because I love the musical score so much; it’s just beautiful!

The castle with Spectro in the foreground:

While I was entranced by the parade, Kathy scored a small victory and got Danny to purchase and adorn a Christmas hat! One down, three to go and she’ll be on top of the world. Doesn’t he just look fetching?

We made our way to Adventureland and walked right on the Jungle Cruise, which I love at night. We followed this up with walk-on rides to Pirates, Splash Mountain and the Haunted Mansion. Next up was my favorite 3D show: Philharmagic. I’m not quite sure if Derek shares my excitement or if he’s simply being facetious; I’m leaning towards the latter:

When we exited the ride Brett noticed Donald Duck standing on the other side of the fastpass distribution area. I was, of course, ecstatic to meet him near his ride (the picture will be perfect for my Philharmagic scrapbook page) so we jumped in line. The fab five were all out in Fantasyland with exceptionally long lines, and I’m guessing it’s because Toontown has been taken over by fairies. I’m okay with this though, because I much prefer outdoor shots with characters over those with cardboard backdrops.

We all met the duck, but the following picture wins by a landslide. Donald almost succeeded in pushing Danny all the way out of the frame:

Next we entered Tomorrowland and took a breather on the TTA. At Buzz Lightyear a dual ensued between the boys. Brett thinks he won, while Derek is convinced his own gun wasn’t working properly, so I guess there’ll have to be a rematch later.

From there it was time to bid goodnight to the kingdom. We stood on the Tomorrowland bridge for some time waiting for the castle to fade back to blue. Before it came around we headed up Main Street, but Derek and Kathy did get some shots of a pink castle:

As everyone was debating whether or not to pick up a snack on the way out, I joined Goofy on the bench he frequents to do a little people watching:

And so it goes… we’ve finally come to the end of our first full day!

DisneyGigi · Dec 30, 2008

Love the report so far- great pictures. Love the Donald pic outside Philharmagic! I also agree with you about Fulton's I was not that impressed either when we went last year. Can't wait to see the rest.

disneyfamilyjd · Dec 30, 2008

Okay Holly, so I could seriously read and reread your trip reports all day. You write so beautifully and you really entice the reader and almost make it so I can actually picture myself on vacation with you. You should try writing a book about WDW from a true traveler/fan perspective...I know that I would definitley buy that guide!!

I hope I didn't give you a big head now...LOL!!!

Can't wait to hear more and more and more......

-Danielle:sohappy:

The Making of Disney Dreams and Christmas Memories: A December 2008 Trip Report

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

EPCOT Explorer

New Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

Uponastar

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

wvdisneyfamily

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

DormaNesbit

Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

DisneyGigi

Well-Known Member

disneyfamilyjd

Member