Trip Report Yia-Yia, Yetis and Epcotonians. A sweltering Summer of '22 adventure!

It was the night before our Disney trip and I found myself scrambling. So much to do besides "Disney but "Disney" needed to get done. Where are my SD cards? Where are all my Star Wars shirts? Where is my camera bag? We had just moved after-all and things were not where they should be because well we were in a different house. Toni was scrambling too. She is spending the Summer waitressing in Bethany Beach Delaware and came home THAT DAY to get everything ready for Disney. Her Mom however also wanted her to help get her "crap" ready for college (leaving in a few weeks). Tensions were running high and the early morning flight out of Baltimore was like lighting a fuse to a stick of dynamite. Time was ticking away!

This was going to be a different trip for us. Just three of the five in the family as my wife Val decided to sit this one out and my daughter Alex couldn't get her schedule to work. So Val will be going to New Mexico to visit Alex in a month as the final three, the triumvirate headed to Walt Disney World to meet up with my sister Marina's family and my mom (Yia-Yia).

The Triumvirate -

Toni (center), Sterg and yours truly.

As you may or may not know, one of the things I love about going to Disney is honing my photography skills. For this trip I decided to rent two fantastic (and expensive) lenses. The Sony GM 50mm f/ 1.2 and the Sony GM 14mm f/1.8 lenses to be exact. The cost to buy both of those lenses would be as much as the cost of the entire trip. Additionally I rented a lens adaptor to pair with my old Minolta 70-210 "beercan" lens that I wanted to try out on the Safari.

I've been crazy after the 14mm lens due to it's wide angle nature. It's actually so wide it's referred to as an "ultra-wide angle" lens. Wide angle lenses have wonderful applications at WDW and I was going to see how this baby was going to work for me. The 50mm 1.2 is a lens with a great reputation. Very fast, very sharp and producing beautiful bokeh as your sharp subject stands in front of a background that literally melts into a dreamy blur of photographic delight.

By 11pm all that was packed, what was left of my Star Wars shirts was packed - "Chris, aren't we just getting a bit too old for Star Wars shirts?" Val quipped - and everything else on my list was packed.



Toni was also packed and had full-filled her "getting ready for college" obligations.

Val said her goodbyes and goodnights..

and went to bed.


It was soon time for me to lay down for 3 hours of sleep. The hardest thing left for me to do was wake up with my alarm. I think I'll have a glass on wine (or two?). After-all, what could go wrong?

 

[senor_jorge]

My coffee seems to taste better while reading a @fractal trip report.

 

[rshell68]

At 12 years old, Mia was the most "scared" of the group going in. She just transferred to a new school after she had a rough time with a certain group of girls at her old school picking on her. I think this trip was great for her as Sterg and Toni gave her a lot of attention and love that only cousins can do.

This makes me both sad and mad at the same time. Why? Just why do people have to be this way Glad she had Sterg, Toni and family to be with. Hope she has a better year and likes her new school!

 

[stevedisney]

Really enjoying this especially the incredible photos!! Just checked into Wilderness Lodge this afternoon with my family

 

[fractal]

My coffee seems to taste better while reading a @fractal trip report.

Better than Coffee mate!

This makes me both sad and mad at the same time. Why? Just why do people have to be this way Glad she had Sterg, Toni and family to be with. Hope she has a better year and likes her new school!

She's at that awkward tween age and kids can just be vicious. She's doing well at the new school. Thanks

Really enjoying this especially the incredible photos!! Just checked into Wilderness Lodge this afternoon with my family

Thanks @stevedisney ! Have a great trip!

 

[Sillysidewalker]

I always try to get a different angle on this.

YiaYia was perfectly content with waiting out the "thrill rides" In fact on more than one occasion we would return to her talking to a new friend. My Mom is very outgoing, friendly and tells great stories. She also can be very opinionated with very little filter! But that's what keeps it interesting.

We knew what to expect with Dinosaur and always loved the blast into the past. At 12 years old, Mia was the most "scared" of the group going in. She just transferred to a new school after she had a rough time with a certain group of girls at her old school picking on her. I think this trip was great for her as Sterg and Toni gave her a lot of attention and love that only cousins can do.

Here we go again!

As I've said before - photographing inside Dinosaur is an incredible challenge. With the 50mm 1.2 attached on my camera I was not going to let the challenge pass.

B-Mode Dino but I got him. Remember my setting for the fireworks? F/13, 10 second exposure, ISO 50. For this shot I needed ISO 6400 and f/1.2 due to the darkness, and a shutter speed of 1/200 of a second because of the truck's motion and the dino's motion.

Here's a new shot for me...

And look who saved us!

When we returned, YiaYia did make a new friend and somehow found a flower to put in her hair.

She's a big fan of Festival of the Lion King so Marina, Bill and I decided to take her there while the kids wanted more rides on Everest.

We saw Donald and Daisy along the way...

Back in Africa. The heat was becoming intense and we were all looking forward to some shaded and air-conditioned entertainment.

We got in the standby line for FotLK and wouldn't you know it, they filled up the theater with us about 10 people away from getting in. C'est la vie.

Now what? I made the decision to head to Dawa Bar and get some refreshments. After finding a shaded seat I crossed the street to get a Simba Dole treat for my Mom and Marina.

Bill and I decided on the Safari Ale.

With the heat becoming oppressive we choose to go back to the resort.

One last shot.

On the way to the bus, we discussed my Mom's difficulties with the ECV and the potential danger is posed to herself (and others). We decided to keep the ECV for her to use to get from her room, to the bus, and to the park entrance. At that point we would rent a wheelchair for her. We would put this strategy to the test later at EPCOT.

We pushed my mother in law in a wheel chair for our trip for the exact same reason. The lines are hard to navigate and there are sooo many people. My mom uses an ECV regularly since her stroke. We are always trying to talk her into Disney but she won’t let her push her in a wheelchair. Depending on your results I may use your report to support my cause!!!

 

[erstwo]

What is it about parents getting to the age of needing a scooter that makes them sassier than ever?? . Your stories and the photo of the lobby in @MagicalMaci ’s report reminded me of guiding my father in law (on his scooter) through a crowd of beauty pageant winners last July and him craning his neck (not looking where he was going)to see if he could engage one of them (and probably Flirt with them)
Love your HM photos and AK photos!
So glad your niece is in a new environment. Love that your kids have her back. That kind of love and support can pull you through the tough times. Sending her good vibes for a great year.

 

[Spash007]

Thank you @Laurenciaa ! Looking forward to your report!



At first glance when I was editing the shots I wasn't thrilled, but the more I look at them the more I like them. There's a certain character to the lens (like most vintage lenses).



Thanks @Spash007 ! The ECV can be herky jerky! Lol the YiaYia story - do you have a trip planned any time soon?



Yes, YiaYia was a piece of work that morning!

We’ll be back at the beginning of December with my in laws staying at AoA. We were also going to go next week, but decided to cancel that one and instead take an adults trip in February for our 10 year anniversary. We’ll be doing a split stay between GF and then cruising on the Wish, so it’ll be very different than our December one!

 

[fractal]

We used the afternoon to relax and cool down. I ended up taking a nap in the room. Our plans were to spend the evening in EPCOT and eat dinner sporadically at the Food and Wine Festival kiosks. Team Marina was anxious to get going so they left 15-20 minutes before us.

Ready to go!

We made it.

We couldn't get any signal from Team Marina so we rode SSE.

The 50mm 1.2 was perfect for this ride.

Thank you.

Those Greeks

This is where I spotted this little guy in the corner. In all my times riding SSE I never noticed him!

He's not a boy. He has a full beard. But he's literally half the size of everyone else in the scene. And why is he holding a broken statue? Strange. I got a better shot of him.

on to the Romans...

And it was burning.

Don't worry, be happy.

The backup system.

Another detail I never noticed...

The first spellchecker?

 

[slipperalwaysfits]

I always find new details to photograph at AK!

Like this "Ye-Tea" sign...

Oh, I love this sign!! I have never noticed it before but I’m so glad you pointed it out!! Honestly, I feel like the level of detail at AK is so much more than at the other three parks. There are just so many little things to notice!

We knew what to expect with Dinosaur and always loved the blast into the past. At 12 years old, Mia was the most "scared" of the group going in. She just transferred to a new school after she had a rough time with a certain group of girls at her old school picking on her. I think this trip was great for her as Sterg and Toni gave her a lot of attention and love that only cousins can do.

I’m so sorry to hear about Mia’s struggles but I’m so glad she has such fabulous older cousins looking out for her and giving her that “family love.” My cousins are 10 years older and far away but they’ve always had my back, too.

. I think this trip was great for her as Sterg and Toni gave her a lot of attention and love that only cousins can do.

The 50mm 1.2 was perfect for this ride.

Wow. What an awesome shot of the Willy Mammoth! That’s one of my favorite parts of the ride!!

 

[fractal]

Get this man a chair!

Some SpaceShip Earth details...

It was right here that the ride stopped for a good 4 or 5 minutes. I decided to switch to videoing the rest of the ride. A wider lens would have been more appropriate but overall I thought it came out well. I've been trying to get more into video but the files that come out of my camera are so large that they lock up my 10 year old MAC if I try to load them for editing. I really need to upgrade my system before I delve into video much further. The videos I post now are uploaded directly from the SD card or phone to YouTube.

Here is the "2nd Half" of SpaceShip Earth...



Sterg was enjoying his future!

I was dying to see Guardians which made that our next stop.

This was a good teaser.

Then Mission Space. I finally made contact with Marina - they had YiaYia in a wheelchair and were at Canada. I told her we were going up the Mexico side and we would meet them in the middle of World Showcase. She asked why I would go that way if they were in Canada and I responded with "We're practically at Test Track so to reverse course from here would be stupid." Looking back I don't think she understood what I was getting at but she didn't seem happy.

The other reason we were heading up that side was to get to the first-aid center. During our afternoon break, Toni tripped and fell outside scraping her knee pretty bad. I played Doctor but my bandaging gave way in Epcot and we needed to stop some bleeding.

On the way to First Aid. The staff, by the way was great. They cleaned her up put some cream and bandage on the scrape, gave us a fresh supply and sent us on our way.

We snagged this at a nearby Kiosk - our first (and best) food stop of the night.

World Showcase was packed!

We stopped into the Mexico Pavilion.

UP NEXT - More Food and Fine treats, A meet-up with a fellow magician and an International Interfamily crisis!

 

[MinnieM123]

The other reason we were heading up that side was to get to the first-aid center. During our afternoon break, Toni tripped and fell outside scraping her knee pretty bad. I played Doctor but my bandaging gave way in Epcot and we needed to stop some bleeding.

On the way to First Aid. The staff, by the way was great. They cleaned her up put some cream and bandage on the scrape, gave us a fresh supply and sent us on our way.

Glad Toni was able to go to First Aid. They do have very nice staff at that First Aid location in EPCOT. (About 10 years ago, I had to stop in there, and they were very helpful. I think the nurse & clinic were affiliated with one of the Florida hospitals, but I don't recall which one.)

 

[fractal]

What is it about parents getting to the age of needing a scooter that makes them sassier than ever?? . Your stories and the photo of the lobby in @MagicalMaci ’s report reminded me of guiding my father in law (on his scooter) through a crowd of beauty pageant winners last July and him craning his neck (not looking where he was going)to see if he could engage one of them (and probably Flirt with them)
Love your HM photos and AK photos!
So glad your niece is in a new environment. Love that your kids have her back. That kind of love and support can pull you through the tough times. Sending her good vibes for a great year.

Lol on your Father-in-law! I guess I would be worried if he wasn't interested in the pageant winners!

Thanks for the kind words!

Yesterday we were at Marina's house for Mia's 13th birthday. She's doing really well especially compared to 6-12 months ago.

We’ll be back at the beginning of December with my in laws staying at AoA. We were also going to go next week, but decided to cancel that one and instead take an adults trip in February for our 10 year anniversary. We’ll be doing a split stay between GF and then cruising on the Wish, so it’ll be very different than our December one!

Great! That split stay sounds awesome!

Oh, I love this sign!! I have never noticed it before but I’m so glad you pointed it out!! Honestly, I feel like the level of detail at AK is so much more than at the other three parks. There are just so many little things to notice!

There really are and it seems they continue to add new things!

I’m so sorry to hear about Mia’s struggles but I’m so glad she has such fabulous older cousins looking out for her and giving her that “family love.” My cousins are 10 years older and far away but they’ve always had my back, too.

We are fortunate enough to have a large extended family and my children grew up with the support of their older cousins so they are continuing to pass that down!

Wow. What an awesome shot of the Willy Mammoth! That’s one of my favorite parts of the ride!!

Thanks, agree!

Glad Toni was able to go to First Aid. They do have very nice staff at that First Aid location in EPCOT. (About 10 years ago, I had to stop in there, and they were very helpful. I think the nurse & clinic were affiliated with one of the Florida hospitals, but I don't recall which one.)

They were terrific. We were in and out of there in less than 10 minutes.

 

[fractal]

Sterg and Toni grabbed this to eat in Norway.

They weren't very impressed.

The "Wall People", the "Freeze People" and the "Beavers" were out in full force.

Dodging, darting and avoiding them became a game for us as we utilized the large space in WS to zip through.

I pulled out of the fast lane for this shot.

While the 2/3rds peeled off to find more food, I needed a beer. These two were very nice and after asking questions about my camera I asked them if I could take their photo...

In Germany. I love this statue!

I then focused on the miniature train set despite no train running...

It was very warm and muggy that evening but World Showcase was buzzing and filled with wonderful sight, sounds and electricity. 2020 was nice because we had the place mostly to ourselves but it was great to feel that energy again in EPCOT.

 

[cgersic]

Oh my goodness so much to see in Spaceship Earth through your lens!!! Thanks for giving me some new stuff!!

 

[pkkurz]

Sterg and Toni grabbed this to eat in Norway.

They weren't very impressed.

The "Wall People", the "Freeze People" and the "Beavers" were out in full force.

Dodging, darting and avoiding them became a game for us as we utilized the large space in WS to zip through.

I pulled out of the fast lane for this shot.

While the 2/3rds peeled off to find more food, I needed a beer. These two were very nice and after asking questions about my camera I asked them if I could take their photo...

In Germany. I love this statue!

I then focused on the miniature train set despite no train running...

It was very warm and muggy that evening but World Showcase was buzzing and filled with wonderful sight, sounds and electricity. 2020 was nice because we had the place mostly to ourselves but it was great to feel that energy again in EPCOT.

Love the details in Germany Great wide shots around World Showcase.

 

[fractal]

Before our trip @LisaBelle told me that her trip overlapped with ours. So we exchanged numbers in the hopes of meeting up.

As we continued through EPCOT I heard someone call out "Chris!". I turned around and there she was!

I loved the ears!

from Sterg's phone...

Lisa called over the rest of her crew and we got a nice group shot!

It was wonderful meeting @LisaBelle in person and her very friendly family! We didn't get to partake in dinner and too many drinks like we did we @coachwnh but WDW meetups are awesome and adds another layer of magic to any trip. Thanks for making the effort and spotting us @LisaBelle !

 

[mpaulam]

Just got all caught up. All of your pictures are great, but the fireworks pictures are just spectacular!

 

[fractal]

Oh my goodness so much to see in Spaceship Earth through your lens!!! Thanks for giving me some new stuff!!

Thanks @cgesic! Glad you like them!

Love the details in Germany Great wide shots around World Showcase.

Thanks @pkkurz - many more to come!

Just got all caught up. All of your pictures are great, but the fireworks pictures are just spectacular!

Much appreciated @paulaparm !

 

[fractal]

As we continued our journey through World Showcase I called Marina to get a bearing on their location. They were approaching Morocco and she was still steamed at me as if we were trying to avoid them, which was ridiculous. My sister has a great but very demanding career with crazy hours. Vacations, especially to WDW are not only her getaway time from that but also great quality time with her family - both of which are very valuable to her. So when on these trips she wants thing to go a certain way and can she can get testy and demanding. This serves her well in the corporate world so I understand where it comes from plus I grew up with her!

We hit Morocco at the same time and everyone warmly greeted each other except Marina and I. She walked by and gave me a hmmmph type look. All of a sudden it was like we were 10 and 12 years old fighting for control of the TV.

"Marina, I don't know why you're so mad at me!"

"Because I told you we were in Canada and you decided to go the complete opposite direction!"

"We were already on that side - near Mexico!"

Bill, listening in along with half the people in Morocco interjected. "Sounds like we have an international crisis here. I'm going to be Sweden and play neutral."

Marina and I stopped, looked at him and started laughing along with the kids and some other bystanders. After that and some more explaining by me about Toni needed First Aid, etc. we were good again. Just like in childhood when one minute we wanted to kill each other, then the next we were best buddies.

With the air cleared up of family drama we hit up the Greece Kiosk for some Gryros.

In addition to my Mom being an amazing cook and expert in Greek Cuisine having had her own restaurant for half her life, I just happen to run our Church's Annual Greek Food Festival. I've been the Chairman of that for 15 of the past 18 years and it's a pretty big deal.

My kids love helping out...

Thousands of people come to it every year.

The local TV stations do stories on it...

We have live Greek music all weekend.

and Greek dancing...

and of course, amazing Greek Food.

The Greek Kiosk was about to be put to the test.

Unfortunately, it failed. YiaYia and I agreed it was the worst gyro sandwiches we ever had and the saganaki (fried Greek kesseri cheese) was hardly passable.

But, I did get her to pose...

We all decided we wanted to hang out in World Showcase and wait for the fireworks show. I immediately regretted not bringing my tripod. Marina and I, now working as a team secured a spot by the lagoon in front of Italy. We would take turns manning it while others explored. I decided to take my camera into Italy for the first time as it's likely the country I've least toured and photographed in WS. In fact, I probably have more photos of the Rome scene in SSE than the Italian pavilion!

 

[rshell68]

The Greek Kiosk was about to be put to the test.

Unfortunately, it failed. YiaYia and I agreed it was the worst gyro sandwiches we ever had and the saganaki (fried Greek kesseri cheese) was hardly passable.

Darn the gyros were on my list to try.
You and your sister sound so much like my brother and I. One minute fighting like cats and dogs next minute buds again.