Day 2 - Sometimes Making Magic is Tragic (Part 3)
Hello again, fellow travelers! Picking up where I left off, the room at Contemporary was "Wow".
The look was very...well...contemporary (yes, pun intended). So, lets start with the minibar / closet area. The room had two stand alone mini closets (his and hers, I assume) as well as a small counter in between where the coffee maker, able to brew two single cups at a time, the ice bucket, and 4 glasses are. Turn around, and you are facing the bathroom, hiding behind a sliding pocket door! The kid found this especially fun. "Look Dad, it slides, that is SO COOL!"
I swear, I do the same thing when I enter Magic Kingdom, *cue the tears* LOL. I blow a kiss up to Uncle Walt and proceed to *lose it* as my now grown son says LOL. Tell your Princess the same thing I tell my son, "someday, you will do the same thing with your kids!* LOL Memories, at their best!!!!!!!!
Inside the bathroom is a smaller room for the toilet with a similar sliding door (I like isolated toilets in hotels, nice touch). It is a low flow model (no surprise there) with lots of suction. It sounds like a small jet engine is spinning up when you flush it (which made the kid jump). To flush the toilet, you push a button on the top of the tank.
This led to some amusement, as the kiddo couldn't figure out how to flush the first time she used it, and when she called me in to help, I found her crawling around the tank looking for a lever!
With showers in a hotel, I have only a few requirements. Good pressure, good drainage, and good heat! The Contemporary met all three requirements, so no complaints there.
However, there was something in the restroom I despised (as did the kid, she complained of it of her own merit). The sinks! Sure, square sinks (see picture) look cool! However, think about what happens when you turn water on with any amount of force and it hits a flat surface a few inches away.
That's right. It splashes all over the place! Now, think about what happens when water collects on a relatively flat surface. Right again! It doesn't drain! These sinks don't drain worth a squat. Just brushing our teeth was an ordeal where we had to stop, and use our hands and a washcloth to quite literally "push" the water down the drain.
I'm sorry, form over function is never a good idea in my book. I could live without those silly sinks. Obviously put in by a designer, and approved by someone who never used them!
The main room had a rather neat glass / marble desk area, with plenty of plugs for charging items. Nice! The TV stand had the fridge beneith it, and a small shelf which we found handy for holding our desserts for our "Wishes" party (more later on that).
The only gripe I had about the TV...well, two gripes. One, Disney seems to always have signal issues at every hotel I've ever stayed at with the exceptions being the DisneyWorld channels (music channels, etc.), XD, and the Disney Channel. I am pretty sure they use DirectTV. Since I'm not really a TV watcher, this doesn't bother me at all, but it is just something I notices. The second gripe is that I wish the unit pulled out on an arm.
It is flat mounted in the TV stand. That's great if you are sitting in the first bed, but the second bed doesn't have the best view. Since the kiddo is the TV watcher of the two of us, and she wanted to sleep closer to the deck, it would have been nice to be able to rotate the TV. Again, it's a nitpicky gripe, I know...but it would be a nice touch.
The highlight of the room, of course, is the deck. 12 stories up, facing the Magic Kingdom and the Seven Seas Lagoon, you can't get a much better view than this.
Normally here is where we would claim our drawers (and closet space), unpack everything, set up a charging station, and otherwise basically get settled in the room for our stay. But, since this is just a one night deal...a place to squat before leaving for the cruise (which, is still a secret at this point for the kiddo)...we did nothing of the sort. Instead, we plopped the luggage down on the bed, I set my laptop up to charge, and we headed off to the Magic Kingdom!
I asked the kiddo which transportation option she would like to do. Mind you, I'd told her about the fitbit earlier (she was curious what that thing on my belt was).
Oh, the fitbit! I explained it to her, but I haven't explained what it is to you! Basically, it's a pedometer. It comes in a few different models. The one I bought is called the <????> and is their lowest model. The have a model that goes on your wrist, which I considered, but then realized that I really didn't want to spend nearly $90 on a pedometer. This one was $50, which is plenty 'spensive for me!
http://www.fitbit.com/
Why is it so expensive? Well, it's not really the unit itself, though, it is very well done, with a tap sensitive screen and a very comfortable case...in fact, I put it on and basically forget that it is there. It's because the unit has bluetooth and USB connection (though a special USB "plug" that you put in your computer) that allows the unit to sync with the Fitbit app on your phone, or with your computer / their website.
The app/site is free (though they do have premium offerings, I think the free site is more than enough). It allows you to track your progress day by day, week by week, etc. It also has a "water consumption" utility to track how many glasses of water from your goal you have, a calorie counting "consumption" log with a searchable database of common foods (and of course, the ability to add your own), a weight tracker and much more.
I am impressed! If you are looking to track weight loss on a plan (or if you are like me and just find the metrics interesting), I'd recommend picking one up!
Ok, so, back on track. I offered the Kid a choice between the Monorail and walking. She said "Lets walk to the Magic Kingdom so we can get some exercise!" and then proceeded to poke my belly. Cheeky little thing! I'll get her back!
So, we walked. It was a pleasant walk, for those who haven't done it. Walking under the Monorail track reminded me of Disneyland in California...though, it's still not as low as the tracks are there (and it's "home" for me, so, sorry Disneyland, I still like the WDW Monorail better!). The IronManorail (wrapped for Iron Man 3) passed over us, as did Monorail Teal.
How do I remember this? The kid kept calling out their names...though, she kept calling them Metrorails. This mistake is probably due to the fact she lives near DC and takes the Metro there. Still, like her calling Atlanta "Atlantica" years ago, I found the term endearingly amusing, so I didn't bother to correct her.
We got to Magic Kingdom, and even though it was nearly noon, the gates were swarmed with people. Bag check went fine (nice guy manning it, by the way...nothing special happened, but he was just nice and wished us a magical day). Ok, so, we've now used Magicbands at the Magical Express (A+ experience), at the hotel as the room key / key to access the Atrium Club (A experience)...now it's time to try the buggers out as park tickets!
They are doing some sort of construction at the ticketing gates (I'm assuming installing more Magicband Readers), so walls were up. This split the ticketing gates in two. We went left. Sad to say, there were NO Magicband readers on this side! Only regular gates.
Now, I'd brought along our keys (yes, we were issued both bands and regular Key to the World cards...though the KTTW was yellow this year, instead of the blue I am used to...). We were told at check in that we should carry both, because some places weren't yet able to use the Magicbands. I found this was sage advice.
However, even though we could have entered using our KTTW keys, I really wanted to try the Magicbands out! So, we hiked over to the right side gates, and there they were. Magicband poles! They were processing guests who didn't have Magicbands as well, using the RFID in their KTTW cards, so I assume more guests are getting the RFID cards than just those testing Magicbands. However, what I did notice is the difference in lines.
The Magicband line seemed to be processing more guests (they could do 4 at a time), and was more spacious (less crowded) than the regular lines. As a result, while they appeared to have the same, if not more, throughput, they appeared shorter and more inviting than the normal lines, which were twice to three times as long. I will mention, it's not like I did a head count or stayed to observe for any long period to get a feel...this is just based on my general impression as we approached.
But, that's important to a Guest...general impression. So, I still think it's a valid observation, and one that a Guest who isn't a disnut will certainly notice!
So, Magicband as Park Ticket? A+ Experience! Magicbands are scoring high so far!
The only critical observations I had at this point are:
1) The band is actually more comfortable upside down, both the kid and I noted. This is due to the flat nature of the top of the band. However, if you wear it like this it is next to impossible to use in some cases without twisting your arm at an uncomfortable angle...so, Mouse Up it is!
2) The RFID sensor on the door was too close to the doorjamb. While it was mounted center over the and is aesthetically pleasing, I found it was sometimes difficult to get Mickey to match up "just right" with the sensor. New units with the sensor area off center would be nice. That being said, after a few uses I had it down pat, so it's not that big a deal.
Man, it's good to be back. I teared up a bit (yeah, big softy) as we walked through the Main Street station and back into the "world". I was reminded of passing through the Main Street Station in Disneyland a few months back, and the size difference is dramatic. I much prefer our station at WDW (don't worry, I won't be doing a whole lot of DLC to MK comparisons in this report, it just popped in my head is all!).
First stop, the kiosk on the right side of the station that sells autograph books, ears, and other items. She decided she didn't want a lanyard yet, though we'll still get one for our trip lanyards...we make a lanyard each year of special pins from our hotels, special / favorite rides, etc. These lanyards are our "trip souvenirs"...we never bring these back to the world, even though we bring back our trading pin sets each year.
We got an autograph book and a set of glittery Minnie Mouse ears attached to a hairband. She chattered excitedly about the upcoming early dinner with the Princesses in a few hours...I'm glad to see her excited about autographs again. Last year she didn't seem all that interested. So, first test of the Magicband to purchase something! Again, flawless! Though, I didn't think I remembered the pin I had set online...so I guessed.
I guessed correctly! The CM snipped the tag off the ears and I went to put them on the kid, and she declined. "Why?" I asked. "Well, the hairband pulls my hair and it hurts a little!" <facepalms> To be fair, you must remember her hair is in braids right now, so it's understandable. I'm sure this wouldn't be an issue if her hair were down, but considering the curly, tangled mess it becomes when it's not in braids, I'll skip that, thank you very much! <grin>
Second stop...the Firehouse to pick up a set of Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom cards.
So, as usual, let me backtrack for a moment. This year, I have not planned the trip out like I did the year before. I'm leaving it very much up to the kiddo and her whims, with a few anchors for the day (special meals mostly). The super regimented nature of last years trip really took something out of it, at least for me, so it's a lesson learned.
The reason I mention that is...SotMK was her first choice! She remembered it from last year, and immediately wanted to "Go on a MISSION!". So, a Mission it was! Luck have it, we were assigned our first Mission as the Main Street USA missions. She grabbed the map and we headed off to East Center Street, where our mission to defeat Cruella De Vil started!
We played a few levels, and then the kid started to get hot. Plus, our reserved FastPass+ for Splash Mountain was coming up. I suggested we get a LeFou's Brew to chill off with, and go see the New Fantasyland. She's seen ads for the New Fantasyland on TV and online, and is very excited about it all. Especially getting to "go inside Belle's castle".
But, when we made it over there, she wasn't so thrilled. She had thought Belle was a ride, and when I had to inform her it was a restaurant, she wasn't so thrilled. "Belle is a cool princess, don't you think she needs a ride? She's better than the Little Mermaid, and she got a ride.", she frumped.
Well, at this point she wasn't interested in New Fantasyland anymore, and she wanted to ride a ride. So, doing a 180 and skipping Gaston's Tavern, I steered us towards Small World and I ran through the ride options on that side of the park. I figured I'd rather be in Frontierland or Adventureland since we had a fast approaching Splash Mountain FastPass+ reservation. When I mentioned Haunted Mansion, she perked up at the thought.
We swung by the Fastpass machines and snagged a Paper Fastpass for Little Mermaid, and then headed towards the Mansion. On the way I noted that Small World only had a 15 minute wait. "I don't really like Small World" was the kid's response. Really...that's new to me, I thought.
She saw the Tangled Tower and started running towards it. "Daddy, a new Rapunzel ride!" Nope...not a ride. Restrooms. Lets say she wasn't pleased. Two princesses she adored that didn't get new rides. I'm sure she feels offended on their behalf! <grin> She did have fun looking at it all though, and commented that she thought it looked "very nice".
I also thought it was very well done, and fits perfectly in that area. Much better, I hate to say, than a defunct Swiss alps looking abandoned Skyway building. It also helps alleviate the bottleneck that used to accrue between Liberty Square and Fantasyland, by not forcing the whole crowd through the tunnel under Columbia Harbor House.
She spied the Haunted Mansion in the background... "I want to go on that, it's not scary anymore, the ghosts are funny! Last year they switched our heads! Silly!" was her comment. Yes...Silly...we shall see how the Ghost Host feels about being...silly. <grin>
So, off to the queue (being sure to spy the ring!). 15 minute wait. Even though the interactive queue was open last year, I feel like they've changed things around again in the queue. I also have a peeve to report here. I understand people rushing by you if you are stopped in the middle of the queue (to play with an interactive item or something)...but when you are walking at a reasonable pace, and people rush around you pushing themselves and normally dragging their children by the hand as if they got a memo that said that the ride was going to disappear in the next five minutes if they didn't board...yeah...this bothered me.
We actually ran into this behavior several times throughout the day on different rides. Now, I know what some of you are thinking..."Tour groups". Well, I can report, it wasn't just tour groups, though they played their part mobbing the FP lines in a disorganized manner. I think of it more as "summer groups"! I never go this close to the summer season, normally we start on the second or third week of August.
It wasn't that the park was especially crowded, it was the behaviors of the crowd. People just seemed more rushed, pushier, and many had this look of panic as if the park was going to get up and walk away, so they had to rush around everywhere! If this is even close to what it's like in June / July, I'll pass. Thank you.
Anyhow, I gripe, but it really didn't bug me all that much. Nothing really does at Disney. Or rather, very few does. I just shrug it off, make a mental note for the trip report, and keep doing what the kid and I want to do at the pace we wish to do it at. A relaxed pace!
The Haunted Mansion was a nice sight to see. After reading the
longforgotten blog, I've become quite a fan of the ride, and noticed a lot of details that I had previously glossed over on other rides. It really is an amazing ride, and while I prefer the queue at Disneyland, I still prefer the RIDE at WDW.
The kid, however, did not! She made it as far as the stretching room before burrowing her face into my belly. Well, that's better than previous years!
Ok, so to gripe again...in the Stretching Room, the Ghost Host was speaking, and people were on their cell phones, chattering loudly, laughing, and just generally ignoring their surroundings. Also, I've never witnessed a CM there actually have to YELL (rather than just repeat) for people to move to the back. That CM looked ticked off, and not in a "happy haunted mansion" sort of way! Poor lady...
Well, I'll say this (and I don't know if I had anything to do with it, I'd like to think so)...these groups of people would not stop chattering, and I couldn't hear the Ghost Host very well at all...so, a few minutes before the lightning flash, I started saying loudly to the kid "Look up" and pointing up.
"Keep looking!"...people around me started to look up as well, as if they were going to miss something...and before you knew it most of the room was staring at the ceiling (the flash hadn't happened yet)...
When it did...and they saw the dangling horror, the group of girls to my left who were the primary offenders screamed like Bloody Mary had just showed up in their pimple popping magnifying mirror to give them beauty tips.
They were silent after that. With a smug grin, we excited the ride, and from this point forward I have no complaints...about them or the ride.
Once settled in our Doombuggies, the kid gave it a fair shake to be a "big girl" about the ride (once again, her words). She made it as far as the door knocker hallway and the floating candelabra before she was gripping my arm, and later my hand, in fear.
But, like last year, she did spend most of the ride actually watching what was going on, and at the end we again had our heads switched, which she giggled about. "I think my head looks better on your body than your head looks on my body." she says. Um...ok, I'll take that as a compliment...I think...
Then, off to Splash Mountain for our FastPass+ reservation. On the way we stopped by the stocks and took pictures. The kiddo asked me what the stocks were for, and as we walked over to Splash I explained they were for people who didn't finish their Turkey Legs or thought that Nutella Waffles were nasty. Just kidding, I told her what it really was for, punishing criminals in the town square hundreds of years ago.
Walking along the wooden walkway to skip the crowds in Frontierland, we stopped so the kid could take a picture of the birds there. She has a thing about taking pictures of bird. This will become a recurring theme that you'll see come up again.
I also noticed that the smoking area is gone from there. I wonder why. Not that I care, I no longer require the use of it, but it was something I noticed as we walked by.
On to Splash and our first use of Magicbands as Fast Passes! We approached the Fastpass line, bands at the ready. We approached and the CM stopped us. "Sir, where are your fastpasses?" I raised my wrist, and he said, oh, wow. Great! We tapped and Mickey swirled and turned green. FP+ reservation #1 used!
Splash was looking great! The only piece I notices was that the groundhogs were not working in the cave scene, but otherwise it was great. I noticed the refurb the most in the scene where you see Brer Frog fishing, etc. All the small "brer" animetronics were working, and that area looks spectacular. I'm not sure why, but it's always been one of my favorite parts of the ride (the other being the area where you see the birdhouses and gardens before dropping off Slippery Falls). It was also very nice to see that the Chickens in the finale had gotten tender loving care. Previous years there had always been one or more that looked like they were in the middle of having a stroke or seizure. This year, they were dancing and zip a dee clucking away in unison. Very nice!
The kid wanted to play in the playspot (even though she's technically now too large and too old for it physically, mentally she enjoys it still...). But, her wish to go on Little Mermaid (who's FastPass window was coming to a close in 20 minutes) overrode her desire to play. "We can come back later" she said, with Cartman like authority. A slight detour to pick up FastPasses for Big Thunder Mountain, and we were hiking across the bridges. "I'm hot, can I have a frozen lemonade?" So, a short stop at the stand and we used our MagicBand (hers wouldn't work, but mine worked fine) to use our first snack credit of four for the stay. She opted for the frozen orange drink, and shared with me as we hiked it over to Little Mermaid.
We made it with 3 minutes to spare before our window closed. The ride, for us and other FastPassers was basically a walk on. One nice thing about the frozen Minute Maid drinks is that they have a lid, so I was able to carry it on the ride. The queue is fantastic, and really, outside of the heat, I wouldn't mind waiting in the longer standby line and taking in all the nifty details they put there. It is a million times better than the DLC version of the queue...but the ride is exactly the same. I enjoyed it more this time though, even though I wish they hadn't gone with such a plastic look for the characters. Then again, I can't really think of a better way to do it, so I'll keep my criticism to myself. The kid, however, who had not seen it at all loved it.
She gasped with joy as our shell went "under water" and loved the lighting effects. "Daddy, we are going under water! See, Daddy! Isn't this cool?" She also clapped with joy and had a huge grin on her face when we got to the "Under the Sea" scene. And she sung along. Her enjoyment of the ride made it all the better for me. So, while I have a few other gripes about it (like the constant re-use of the same characters (yes, I'm looking at you spinning starfish) in the ending scene, and the fact I wish that Scuttle had a few more lines, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
We finished the frozen Orange drink and headed off to catch our Big Thunder Mountain FP time. On the way she complained of being hot again. It wasn't the hottest day that I've experienced at the parks, but I agree, it was pretty scorchin'! So, we stopped by the eatery near the bridge over to Big Thunder and got snack #2 with our MagicBands. A Mickey Premium Ice Cream! I'm not how this happens, but every trip we seem to buy one from this vendor, and I have pictuers and video of her eating one of these while walking on the bridge from every trip. This year, obviously, was no exception.
She had devoured the whole thing by the time we got to the Big Thunder queue. We flashed our paper passes, and again, this was a virtual walk on. The kid wanted to sit in the front, so she asked the CM at the loading area if we could wait. The CM said "Are you sure? It's the slowest part of the train." "Oh? So where should I sit for the best ride?" exclaimed the kiddo? "In the middle". "Oh, can I wait and sit there then?" The CM chuckled and said "Sure, just give it a few minutes and I'll have you ready for the best seat on the train." Nice. So, of course, we watched several families get seated, and then were shuffled off to our "premium seat" in the middle. Now, I don't notice the difference, but the kid was elated that she was "sitting in the best seat on the train". I'll let her have her little joys. <grin>
The ride was great as always. This was the first time the kid actually felt comfortable putting her hands in the air for the whole ride. I think her longer (and larger) legs helped with that...We also chatted about how my watch broke on this ride a few years ago, and my kid said I should put my watch in my pocket so I don't break it again. Good advice, and it is exactly what I did.
From there, we still had time to burn before our early dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table. I was famished. I hadn't eaten anything all day outside of a few bites of the frozen orange drink and coffee that morning. But, we were close enough to visiting Cindy's that I held back. But, man did Peco's smell good, as did Golden Horseshoe (wow, it was open! I never see it open!)...it was all I could do not to stop and get a snack. But, I made it through!
We went back to Main Street to finish our "mission" from before. The clue was in the Main Street Station, and from there we were taken to the art gallery / movie theater. Now, I love this little theater (I liked it even better when it was actually a theater), but as a parent, I also hate this little theater. Why? Cartoons. They play...classic Disney cartoons. This is something my kid is addicted to. And, once she sees it, she will make any excuse to plop down and watch. From this point forward, it's like her bum was super-glued to the carpet. Prying her out of there is a chore, so, unless I'm in the mood to let her do it, I tend to avoid that place like the plague.
But, this time our mission required we enter there...so enter we did. And, as expected she pulled the "Oooooh, cartooons!" card out and plopped on the floor. I took the time to browse the gallery to see if there was anything I was interested in purchasing. There wasn't...but it's still fun to look around. Eventually, and to my surprise, she approached me and asked if I was ready to go to the next clue. "Um, I was waiting on you." I said. "Oh, well I was waiting on YOU!" she replied. Yeah...right...<grin>
So, the next clue was on Center Street East, right outside the jewelry shop. This was the end of our Main Street quest, and luckily it forwarded us to Fantasyland. This was convenient, because we had about 20 minutes to go before our ADR at Cindy's Royal Table! We did two of the missions, and the time had come to eat.
So, I'm gonna leave it here for two reasons. One, because I have a major peeve coming up and I want to spend a bit of time on it and two because the kid and I are going to head out to grab some dinner and do some shopping.
Oh, tonight when the kid is in the Oceaneer Club, I'll go through the past few posts and add uploaded pictures to them.
bbiab!
<continued next post>
