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.

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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.

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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..
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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?
 
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Minnie1986

Well-Known Member
With the show over and YiaYia lending further proof that Walt Disney World is indeed for ages 1 to 100, we marched off to our next exploit.

Having proven herself with her Yeti encounter I felt she was up to one of the most terrifying attractions in all of Walt Disney World...

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Just kidding!


But not about "terrifying"...

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We sat way in the back in the wheelchair/ECV section which took some of the edge off the Malstrom of Mayhem that was inevitably to occur.

Hopper showed up ready to send rows of unsuspecting children (and their parents) into outright panic and terror.

"hornets attack!"

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Not sure if the shrills and pandemonium is worse after the stings or the black widow attack.

"Black Window spiders, you're over your target!"

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By the way, this is a shot I've been trying to get over the last few trips. I consider it one of the toughest shots in all of WDW due to the almost complete darkness, the movement of the spiders and the brief period of time you have to acquire the subject, focus and shoot with the correct settings.

Finally got it!

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Toni shrieked and yelled a few times and my Mom found it all very amusing while I was chuckling behind my camera at the scenes of hysteria playing out in front of me.

All that excitement and danger built up quite the appetite for our small band so after leaving the Tree of Life we went off in search of food.
As a testament to how good the spider photo is, I legitimately jumped, knowing full well that it's on my computer.
 

Minnie1986

Well-Known Member
Disney Springs was uneventful. So much so that I don't have a single photo from there. From there we hopped to EPCOT to get one final ride on GotG and for a special meetup.

We parked and I entered EPCOT without my camera. With the exception of water parks, I can't remember the last time that happened. There was a sense of liberation that I enjoyed.

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We entered the park in a steady rain so we decided to sit under cover. I still had my Pixel 6!

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After the rain stopped we made a quick dash to Guardians and enjoyed another blast through space saving the planet. As we exited we had some more excitement as @Tuvalu and @TrolleyFollower91 were waiting for us! I had been texting Tuvalu and wasn't sure if we would meet up due to our tight schedule but she made it happen! Our conversation revolved around Toni trying to convince Tuvalu to ride GotG . :)

Big smiles and a great way to end our trip!

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This is now the third trip in a row we've had the pleasure! Hopefully the next trip will afford us more time to at least sit and have a drink or two.

After our magical magician meetup we hustled back to the resort to pick up an impatient YiaYia and then Sterg drove us to the airport. Our 10:30 flight was delayed and we didn't land in Baltimore until 1:30am. Our baggage was slow appearing which was more typical of Philly airport than BWI. YiaYia, Toni and I jumped on a surprisingly packed bus to parking lot A. In our haste driving to the airport on Day 1 we didn't take note that we parked in lot B. I started to realize this after the dozen stops in the wrong lot. Back to the airport we went. We waiting another 1/2 hour for LOT B bus to show up, this time it was only ourselves and a friendly gentleman back from a golf trip. The drive home was smooth but we didn't walk into the front door until 5:30am!

But that's sometimes the price you pay to get an extra long last-day at WDW.

Thanks to all that followed and commented! Once again it's been a delight sharing our story and my photos! Let's do it again in 2024 (or sooner?).
SUCH a great trip report! Thanks so much for sharing your breathtaking photos with us!
 

Minnie1986

Well-Known Member
Thank you!



Thanks!


Indeed we do.



Lol!





They were so much fun to take.



I think they're nearly identical but perhaps there are small differences. We enjoyed the ride and happy for the addition.



I never saw it except for the photo. You would think they would have bought one for the 'ol man, right?


Thanks for finding the report and commenting @Minnie1986 ! I hope it's helping you get ready for your trip.
Reading your TR has helped so much, especially since we'll be there at the same time of year you guys were in '22. I rarely ever go in summer, so getting the idea to go back to the resort and enjoy some pool time is great!
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Special day for our crew. It's Alexandra's 30th birthday! I'm going to say the cliche thing - "How can it be 30 years?" but it really feels that way.

She's doing great as a traveling nurse and is now stationed in San Diego. Does that mean a future trip out West and maybe some time in Disneyland?

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donaldtoo

Well-Known Member
Happy 30th birthday and congrats to Alexandra, and y’all…!!! :)
Our oldest daughter will turn 33 this year…indeed, where does the time go…don’t blink…!!!!! 🤪:hilarious:

I still have video of all three of our kiddos births…no, not the actual births, but, shortly before and after…!!!!! 😅
Fortunately, I had those tapes transferred to DVD years ago, since magnetic media like that degrades over time…!!! :)
Anyway, again, happy birthday to Alexandra…!!! :)
 

lindawdw

Well-Known Member
Special day for our crew. It's Alexandra's 30th birthday! I'm going to say the cliche thing - "How can it be 30 years?" but it really feels that way.

She's doing great as a traveling nurse and is now stationed in San Diego. Does that mean a future trip out West and maybe some time in Disneyland?

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Happy Birthday Alexandra!!! Time does fly!🎂🎈
 

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