Tuesday, May 3
Woody and I had obligations during the day, so we were booked on a 5 pm flight...which meant I actually got a decent night's sleep! I managed to trick my brain into believing I would be waking up to a "regular" day
. (Of course it helped that I had already been packed for a couple days and had opportunities to double-check that I hadn't forgotten anything.
) When I received the "your room is ready" text before we left home, it was almost surreal.
We drove ourselves to the airport and sailed through security, thanks again to Woody's TSA pre-check. It was a clear day and the forecast for Florida was for sun, so we were quite surprised to encounter strong turbulence mid-flight. Beverage service was suspended and the plane jerked and bumped. It was NOT a magical way to begin a vacation!
But Tink must have been following us since we were definitely "pixie-dusted" after we landed. Woody's suitcase was on the carousel as we arrived at baggage claim; there was no line to check in at Disney's Magical Express and we walked right onto a bus; the bus driver immediately climbed into his seat and began to back up; and Port Orleans French Quarter was the first stop! From getting off the plane to getting off the bus was under an hour
.
Since we did not need to stop in the lobby, we planned to just walk through and exit into the courtyard and head to our room. We did not expect to encounter this:
There were wall-to-wall guests in the courtyard, including numerous children with hula hoops...it was like trying to walk through an obstacle course while pulling along suitcases and carry-ons, all to the soundtrack of rock 'n roll music (not sure how that genre correlates to Mardi Gras!)
Once we cleared the Block Party, our building was only a few steps away. I had requested a second floor room near transportation and was pleased that our room met both requests.
POFQ is our favorite moderate resort and we have stayed in each of the seven buildings except for #4. I thought that this time we might get it since it is also "near transportation". Guess we'll just have to come back!
The first item I unpacked was the most critical item for our room:
Gotta have my clock!
It was also the only item I unpacked, since Woody and I were starving! We hadn't eaten anything since lunch. Sassagoula Floatworks, aka the food court, was the closest dining option. Thankfully there were just a few lingering guests in the courtyard as the Block Party was closing up. The food court wasn't busy at all and we had our food in no time.
Cheesesteak and a grilled chicken sandwich. Both were surprisingly good (or we were just to hungry to care!)
Time for a stroll down memory lane....
On our first visit to WDW as a family of 5, way back in 1993, we stayed at Port Orleans Riverside (when it had the politically incorrect moniker of Dixie Landings.) The bakery in the food court had these scrumptious M&M cookies ~ so good, in fact, that not only did I buy some to take home with us, I insisted on visiting the bakery on each subsequent trip
whether we were staying at the resort or not!!
(How many times did poor Woody have to explain to the guard at the gate that we were just coming in to buy cookies??!!!???)
For several years it was the only place on-property that carried M&M cookies (trust me, I was a cookie-hunter!) When I finally spied an M&M cookie at another location I was elated...until the first bite. It was a white sugar-based cookie, unlike the brown sugar/molasses based cookie at POR/DL. On my next visit to the bakery, the CM confirmed that the recipe they used was unique to them.
I remained in vacation cookie bliss until the early 2000s. It may have been at the time of the resort name change or during the post 9/11 attendance drop that
they stopped making the M&M cookies!! And when M&M cookies began reappearing again, they were all white sugar-based.
Ever the hopeful optimist, I continue to try Disney M&M cookies when I find them.
These were not the classics I remember. Tasty, but not nirvana. I would have been perfectly content to share one cookie with Woody, but when I stood at the display case couldn't help but get two ~
cause what if??!
Woody and I took a delightful evening stroll around the resort grounds before turning in for the night.