Trip Report A Jingle BAM Birthday! *COMPLETED*

*Sorry for the bump. This TR is from December 2016*

Let me begin by giving a shout out to all park commandos ~ those who arrive at the parks at opening and stay until closing ~ those who only use the hotel room to sleep and shower ~

We SALUTE you!!!!!

After a whirlwind 48 hours in the world, we have a new appreciation for the stamina of a park commando. We gave it our all and had a blast ~ though a third non-stop day would have likely killed us!

So do your warm-up stretches and prepare to join us on a quick jog through three parks as we celebrate the quarter-century of a wonderful gal named Em.

Cast: Tuvalu and TrolleyFollower91
Date: December 1-3, 2016
Resort: Coronado Springs

Ready, Set, GO!

 

[blreinsel]

There's nothing like morning at MK! Too bad those ghosts didn't show up.

In their place, I offer my elderly Maine C00n, Scooter. He'll be 18 in May, which is the equivalent of 80 in kitty years.

View attachment 184890

He's draped across my lap at the moment, enjoying this trip report.

He's beautiful! I have two Maine Coone cats myself.. They're only 4 years old, though.

 

[Courtney6682]

1. Was there any Rizzo merch that you can recall @Tuvalu near the new Muppet area? No, I can't wait 14 days to find out for myself..

2. Ye olde town crier was a colonial cutie! Heyyyy there!

 

[Tuvalu]

1. Was there any Rizzo merch that you can recall @Tuvalu near the new Muppet area? No, I can't wait 14 days to find out for myself.

Sorry, guess you're gonna have to wait.

 

[Ciara]

Starting at Adventureland for the win again! You ladies got SO much done.

 

[Tuvalu]

Saturday (con't)

We made it to Ye Olde Lunch Location a couple minutes early.

I don't imagine Christmas trees in colonial homes looked anything like this!

The Graduate is hungry (but so's the mama!)

Our name was quickly announced and we were seated. This ADR was made prior to the menu change and I was NOT HAPPY about the elimination of the Pilgrim's Feast. Turkey and Ooey Gooey Cake is my reason for lunching at Liberty Tree Tavern ~ a cheeseburger (with steak fries) and Ooey Gooey Cake is Em's. The burger survived the menu change and Em wanted to keep the reservation....it was her graduation celebration after all!

Since turkey is included in the all-you-care-to-enjoy Patriot's Platter, it wouldn't be an extraordinary request to ask for it, right? Turkey is also an option on the children's menu. I was prepared to ask for turkey.....after all, how is management going to know guest preference if the guest does not speak up?

"I really like your turkey, but I don't want all the food that comes with the Patriot's Platter. Is it possible just to have turkey?" I inquired.

"No problem!" our server cheerfully replied.

He brought our drinks first. Gone are the specialty LTT mugs that beverages used to come in.

Em said her cheeseburger was delicious. She'd forgotten to hold the bacon so she pulled it off the burger.

TURKEY! TURKEY! TURKEY!

We gorged ourselves but still had room to share an Ooey Gooey, arguably WDW's best dessert.

@MinnieM123, I am happy to report that the menu finally reflects the Ooey Gooey price increase to $8.

And for all you Pilgrim's Feast lovers out there ~ while it may not be an "official" item on the new menu, it remains an "official" item on the register receipt!

And $19 is a lot cheaper than the $32 Patriot's Platter, even when an additional $8 is added for dessert!

 

[Tuvalu]

Our successful morning touring had been accomplished without using a single FP. Our afternoon FPs awaited us at another park. The Graduate made one final ride request before leaving MK.

We got caught up in the parade on our way there.

The park was definitely crowded now! Maneuvering through the people was like playing Frogger .

A glance at the castle always calms the nerves.

We've reached our destination. But will we ride?

(No, not Astro Orbiter. Remember I don't do spinning rides. Look up!)

 

[dumbo67]

I was there on December 3rd as well, and it was my birthday! Love your reports.

 

[Tuvalu]

I was there on December 3rd as well, and it was my birthday! Love your reports.

Happy belated birthday! Hope you had a fun Disney day. Thanks for following!

 

[Tuvalu]

We joined the long line for the MPB 2.0. Typically the queue moves steadily even when there's a lot of people. Not today. We stood in the same spot at the line's end for over 5 minutes. The vehicles appeared to be moving but no one was being allowed on the escalator.

Em and I had a decision to make ~ continue waiting and risk being late for our FP, or get out of line and journey to our next park.

We bailed. No ride.

(A brief TR interruption)
Here's a photo for today's Throwback Thursday ~

Remember this from our July 2016 visit? Em sadly waving goodbye to the MK, not knowing when she would return since she didn't have another trip planned?

Must have been a long 4 months!

I wanted to recreate that pic ~

Is she sad? Well, we all get a bit sad when we say farewell to the MK. But this time Em has another trip planned. How long will she have to wait?

4 months!

(From the date the picture was taken. Today the countdown is at 10 weeks!)

We posed for one last Photopass pic.....

....before boarding the monorail. Epcot, here we come!!!

 

[Tuvalu]

Em and I were nearing the end of our FP window and didn't have time to stop and wait in line for a Photopass pic. I still made the Graduate stop though.

Game time! Which direction are we heading? Left for Test Track/Frozen, or right for the other Tier 1 FP option?

< Cue the final Jeopardy theme >

Make your guess?

Pens down.

Pat yourself on the back if this was your answer:

Since this is Em's trip, she got to choose the FPs. And I will never complain about Soarin'....especially when we got to sit in B glider.

 

[Courtney6682]

I guessed correctly girls!

 

[Tuvalu]

I guessed correctly girls!

You know us so well!

 

[MinnieM123]

Em and I were nearing the end of our FP window and didn't have time to stop and wait in line for a Photopass pic. I still made the Graduate stop though.

View attachment 185211

Game time! Which direction are we heading? Left for Test Track/Frozen, or right for the other Tier 1 FP option?

< Cue the final Jeopardy theme >

Make your guess?

Pens down.

Pat yourself on the back if this was your answer:

View attachment 185212

View attachment 185214

Since this is Em's trip, she got to choose the FPs. And I will never complain about Soarin'....especially when we got to sit in B glider.

What? First FP pick not for Journey into Imagination? (Nothing like the smell of skunk to start off your morning!)

 

[Tuvalu]

What? First FP pick not for Journey into Imagination? (Nothing like the smell of skunk to start off your morning!)

Someone said the smell is really burnt coffee. I no longer hold my nose and think "skunk"! Instead I visualize a percolating pot and the childhood memory of my mother's coffee.

 

[Tuvalu]

The FP+ system gets a lot of complaints but we have found it beneficial for the way we tour. A perfect example is as soon as we exited Soarin we entered the FP queue for Living With The Land. And yes, it was one of those times where the FP was useful as standby was 30 minutes.

< "Listen to the Land, listen to the land....." >

I could sit beside this waterfall all day.

It's fun how the Imagineers dress up the attraction for the holidays.

< "Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream....." >

Rudolph Mickey!

This beautiful purple flowerbed was outside the Land.

 

[LeighM]

We've only ever stayed at Riverside but I'm thinking of staying at Coronado next year after the cruise. It will be a short WDW trip, only 3 nights, so I thought it would be good to try something new. And if we don't like it, then it will only be a few nights

 

[Tuvalu]

We've only ever stayed at Riverside but I'm thinking of staying at Coronado next year after the cruise. It will be a short WDW trip, only 3 nights, so I thought it would be good to try something new. And if we don't like it, then it will only be a few nights

I'm always up for trying something new at Disney. The new CSR rooms look to be very nice!

 

[Tuvalu]

It wouldn't be a visit to Epcot without exploring our favorite gift shop.

Mouse Gear always feels less chaotic than the Emporium and has a wider selection of merchandise. We spent awhile oohing and ahhhing over the adorable baby items for Tuvalette. We could have made serious dents in our wallets if not for the fact we didn't want to carry packages around. Don't worry though.....Tuvalette is far from lacking Disney themed clothing!

Next we decided to partake of some free beverages.

Each time I walk into Club Cool I am reminded of Phoebe Buffay's song "Sticky Shoes."

Hmmmm, what shall we try today?

Not Beverly. Never Beverly. I enjoy the Fanta pineapple from Greece and the Sparberry from Zimbabwe. The Japan drink makes me think of "Vita Meata Vegimin" from I Love Lucy.

Em and I needed to find a place to sit and rest our tired tootsies for a few. Heaven forbid there might actually be a bench somewhere in Future World! We ended up sitting on a low wall outside Club Cool. It afforded us a decent view of American Music Machine's holiday concert. (Now if they had only been followed by the DSB Journey tribute band, it would have been AWESOME!!!!!)

 

[Tuvalu]

As I have mentioned in previous reports, I love reading people's t-shirts. On our way to our next attraction we passed a senior-aged woman wearing a shirt which said:

Inhale
Exhale

Em looked at me and whispered, "So she won't forget to breathe?"

Our final FP was for Spaceship Earth. For the first time in forever, the interactive ending worked properly and our faces appeared!

 

[Tuvalu]

The Graduate had one more request for her Birthday trip. It required more walking, which is another reason we needed that sit-down break earlier. From the exit of SSE, we made the trek to the International Gateway.

Hello, Epcot tree! We love your unique ornaments.

We walked past Canada and the U.K....up the hill and down the hill towards the exit....peeked in the windows of the World Traveler gift store....exited the park....and kept walking until we reached this lovely sight.

And why make that long walk to the Beach Club? For this, of course ~