Hi, gang. I just flew back from the World and are my feet tired! (rim shot) 
Seriously, you DON'T go to WDW to relax and lay around. At least I don't. Too much to see and hear and do. So anyway, I'm beat. As I mentioned in an earlier post here, I don't take pictures at WDW anymore because I already have scads from past trips. But I'm happy to report here in prose the highlights and lowlights of my most recent trip.
I stayed at the Pop Century (was going to be All-Star Movies, but changed my mind). The Pop is a nice value resort with a big food court and decent rooms. My room was well-cleaned and adequate, and ohhhhh those BEDS!!!! Like sleeping on a cloud. Disney always leaves a Sealy Posturepedic brochure in their hotel rooms and this time I took mine home. I WANT a bed like the one I rested and recovered in at Disney. I have plenty of things I need to rest and recover from at home too!
While at the World I visited Magic Kingdom, Epcot and DHS. Did not go to Animal Kingdom. I've posted before how underwhelmed I am by that park. Pretty in its way but not worth repeat visits IMO. Anyway, the best, first part of any visit at WDW is walking down Main Street and seeing the Castle at the end. That sight still lifts my spirits and makes me happy. It's something I know I'll never outgrow.
Weather, overall, was pretty great. Crowds were manageable.
Now, to particulars:
*Saw one of my faves first off - Mickey's Philharmagic. Now, I'd read that the film had been spruced up. And well...huh. It's changed, all right. The first scene - where Donald's sleeping in the box and Mickey rushes out to wake him - looks very strange now in 3D. The whole stage is projected outward and just hangs there in mid-air; it's like there's this big 3D block floating in space with characters running around in it, and it's very disconcerting and just plain weird. I don't remember it being that way the last time I saw it. Fortunately things got better as the film went on and overall, it's as magical and charming and classic DISNEY as ever.
BUT...
*Then I saw the new Star Tours in DHS. And it's terrific. The 3D is sharp and clear and convincing in a way Philharmagic's has never been, and there's no excuse for that - but I'll stop the rant there and continue praising Star Tours. The best thing I can say about it is that it brings back all of the *good* memories about Star Wars, its wonderful characters and exciting chases and memorable villains. Technically it's superb. I rode it 8 times.
If Disney MUST have other people's stuff in the parks, then this is the way to do it. (As long as no one entity overwhelms DHS, I can continue to see it as a Disney Hollywood studio lot with "guest stars" adding to the mix). Star Tours is a triumph. It's not quite Tower of Terror level but it's very darned close.
*Once again I got the Brown Derby/Fantasmic package, and I wasn't disappointed. The Brown Derby's food is great and especially its Grapefruit Cake. If you guys eat at the Derby, you MUST try that. YUM!!! For an entree I had duck prepared 3 ways, and I enjoyed it very much.
Now to Fantasmic - yep, the lift still wasn't working during my show. But the dragon was there, and it came off very well. I don't remember the dragon's head being held up so high before. It was very effective, I'm happy to say. And yes, Mickey being on ground level instead of being high up on the mountain in his Sorcerer's garb wasn't as impressive...but you know, it still worked, and the audience was very happy with the show. I'm not letting the TDO off the hook about the broken effect, but Fantasmic is still a fun show and I'm glad I chose to see it again.
Tower of Terror is still awesome. I noticed during my first 2 visits that one of the hanging lamps in the parlor (the area near the fireplace) was burned out. But on my third visit, the lamp was burning again. Yay TDO!
At DHS, the Beverly Sunset sign was mostly blown out - at night the only bits that lit up were the "BEV" and the "SET", I believe. That was true on all sides of the sign, so I wonder if a fuse, rather than bulbs, was at fault.
I did not see any of the live shows, like Beauty and the Beast and Nemo, because I decided to focus on my favorite attractions and save my poor feet!
My best meal was at San Angel Inn. What a wonderful place it is! The interior is dressed up to look like a Mexican village at sunset, with little buildings and shops, and then in the restaurant area, you sit next to the canal where the boats for the ride float by; it's a really charming touch. It's fun to watch the "live volcano" too. I had the Carne Asada, which is a grilled tenderloin with black beans and a cheese enchilada, and ordered a Crema Bavaria for dessert. YUM!!!!! The tenderloin was juicy and delicious and the dessert, with its berries and cinnamon, was superb. Plus I had 2 - yes, 2 - margaritas. They too were good. Splendid meal all around.
Now, onto Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party...folks, this is worth the extra cash. I have never had a happier, more magical time at a Disney park. The Christmas Wishes fireworks show was wonderful, and the Christmas Memories castle-projection show was AWESOME!!!! What was especially nice about the fireworks show were the peripheral fireworks - bursts of light all around you, not just around the castle. And the Christmas parade - I was in awe! Wooden soldiers performing a complex march, great beautiful floats, and this one carriage was pulled by these tiny white horses - they weren't Shetland ponies, they weren't miniature horses, I don't know what they were, but they were amazing. But the best part of the party was - SNOW ON MAIN STREET!!! Now I know that the snow was being blown into the sky by machines on top of some of the buildings (at least I think that's how they do it) but believe me, it's completely convincing when you see it. It seems to fall down straight from the sky, and the flakes are big and cold and they fall thickly and they melt. It was amazing. Kids especially were freaked out by it. I LOVED it. Plus free hot chocolate and cookies. They both tasted pretty good to me.
And of course the Castle looks so gorgeous covered in "magical frost". The Magic Kingdom is never more enchanting than it is at Christmas time. I'm pulling together finances as we speak so I can go again next year. Going to WDW during its Christmas season is (hopefully) going to become a new Christmas tradition for me.
And I finally had a Dole Whip, at Aloha Isle, and it lived up to the hype. I got the softserve, not the float, and I got pineapple flavor. And it's HEAVEN!!!!
I saw bits of the new Fantasyland construction going on (with that huge magical crane adding SO much to the enchanted ambience) and what I saw looked neat. I'm still not sure if the "forced-perspective" trick with the Beast's castle is going to work or not. It didn't look like a TOY castle at any rate. And of course my own perspective is colored with what I know about its dimensions. It's sure a cool-looking castle though. I didn't ride Dumbo (lines are way too long - same reason I didn't ride Peter Pan's Flight this trip) so I didn't see anything over the fences, unfortunately.
One more thing - I saw the "new" Enchanted Tiki Room. And it's a billion times better than when Iago ran the place. For the first time, I felt like I was inside an enchanted, cozy area where wonderful things were happening. The thunderstorm was cool, and the birds were beautiful and charming. I will agree with some here though that the lip-syncing of the flowers was off; that was very noticeable, and ought to be fixed pronto by TDO . But otherwise the Tiki Room was wonderful - it was the first time I'd seen the show in person - and I'm so glad Disney made the decision to bring back the classic version. It holds up beautifully and the Tiki Room was one of the highlights of my visit.
So that's all for now. I'm off to take a nap in my non-Sealy Posturepedic bed
and try to recover. Thanks for reading! :wave:
Seriously, you DON'T go to WDW to relax and lay around. At least I don't. Too much to see and hear and do. So anyway, I'm beat. As I mentioned in an earlier post here, I don't take pictures at WDW anymore because I already have scads from past trips. But I'm happy to report here in prose the highlights and lowlights of my most recent trip.
I stayed at the Pop Century (was going to be All-Star Movies, but changed my mind). The Pop is a nice value resort with a big food court and decent rooms. My room was well-cleaned and adequate, and ohhhhh those BEDS!!!! Like sleeping on a cloud. Disney always leaves a Sealy Posturepedic brochure in their hotel rooms and this time I took mine home. I WANT a bed like the one I rested and recovered in at Disney. I have plenty of things I need to rest and recover from at home too!
While at the World I visited Magic Kingdom, Epcot and DHS. Did not go to Animal Kingdom. I've posted before how underwhelmed I am by that park. Pretty in its way but not worth repeat visits IMO. Anyway, the best, first part of any visit at WDW is walking down Main Street and seeing the Castle at the end. That sight still lifts my spirits and makes me happy. It's something I know I'll never outgrow.
Weather, overall, was pretty great. Crowds were manageable.
Now, to particulars:
*Saw one of my faves first off - Mickey's Philharmagic. Now, I'd read that the film had been spruced up. And well...huh. It's changed, all right. The first scene - where Donald's sleeping in the box and Mickey rushes out to wake him - looks very strange now in 3D. The whole stage is projected outward and just hangs there in mid-air; it's like there's this big 3D block floating in space with characters running around in it, and it's very disconcerting and just plain weird. I don't remember it being that way the last time I saw it. Fortunately things got better as the film went on and overall, it's as magical and charming and classic DISNEY as ever.
BUT...
*Then I saw the new Star Tours in DHS. And it's terrific. The 3D is sharp and clear and convincing in a way Philharmagic's has never been, and there's no excuse for that - but I'll stop the rant there and continue praising Star Tours. The best thing I can say about it is that it brings back all of the *good* memories about Star Wars, its wonderful characters and exciting chases and memorable villains. Technically it's superb. I rode it 8 times.
If Disney MUST have other people's stuff in the parks, then this is the way to do it. (As long as no one entity overwhelms DHS, I can continue to see it as a Disney Hollywood studio lot with "guest stars" adding to the mix). Star Tours is a triumph. It's not quite Tower of Terror level but it's very darned close.*Once again I got the Brown Derby/Fantasmic package, and I wasn't disappointed. The Brown Derby's food is great and especially its Grapefruit Cake. If you guys eat at the Derby, you MUST try that. YUM!!! For an entree I had duck prepared 3 ways, and I enjoyed it very much.
Now to Fantasmic - yep, the lift still wasn't working during my show. But the dragon was there, and it came off very well. I don't remember the dragon's head being held up so high before. It was very effective, I'm happy to say. And yes, Mickey being on ground level instead of being high up on the mountain in his Sorcerer's garb wasn't as impressive...but you know, it still worked, and the audience was very happy with the show. I'm not letting the TDO off the hook about the broken effect, but Fantasmic is still a fun show and I'm glad I chose to see it again.
Tower of Terror is still awesome. I noticed during my first 2 visits that one of the hanging lamps in the parlor (the area near the fireplace) was burned out. But on my third visit, the lamp was burning again. Yay TDO!
At DHS, the Beverly Sunset sign was mostly blown out - at night the only bits that lit up were the "BEV" and the "SET", I believe. That was true on all sides of the sign, so I wonder if a fuse, rather than bulbs, was at fault.
I did not see any of the live shows, like Beauty and the Beast and Nemo, because I decided to focus on my favorite attractions and save my poor feet!
My best meal was at San Angel Inn. What a wonderful place it is! The interior is dressed up to look like a Mexican village at sunset, with little buildings and shops, and then in the restaurant area, you sit next to the canal where the boats for the ride float by; it's a really charming touch. It's fun to watch the "live volcano" too. I had the Carne Asada, which is a grilled tenderloin with black beans and a cheese enchilada, and ordered a Crema Bavaria for dessert. YUM!!!!! The tenderloin was juicy and delicious and the dessert, with its berries and cinnamon, was superb. Plus I had 2 - yes, 2 - margaritas. They too were good. Splendid meal all around.
Now, onto Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party...folks, this is worth the extra cash. I have never had a happier, more magical time at a Disney park. The Christmas Wishes fireworks show was wonderful, and the Christmas Memories castle-projection show was AWESOME!!!! What was especially nice about the fireworks show were the peripheral fireworks - bursts of light all around you, not just around the castle. And the Christmas parade - I was in awe! Wooden soldiers performing a complex march, great beautiful floats, and this one carriage was pulled by these tiny white horses - they weren't Shetland ponies, they weren't miniature horses, I don't know what they were, but they were amazing. But the best part of the party was - SNOW ON MAIN STREET!!! Now I know that the snow was being blown into the sky by machines on top of some of the buildings (at least I think that's how they do it) but believe me, it's completely convincing when you see it. It seems to fall down straight from the sky, and the flakes are big and cold and they fall thickly and they melt. It was amazing. Kids especially were freaked out by it. I LOVED it. Plus free hot chocolate and cookies. They both tasted pretty good to me.
And of course the Castle looks so gorgeous covered in "magical frost". The Magic Kingdom is never more enchanting than it is at Christmas time. I'm pulling together finances as we speak so I can go again next year. Going to WDW during its Christmas season is (hopefully) going to become a new Christmas tradition for me.
And I finally had a Dole Whip, at Aloha Isle, and it lived up to the hype. I got the softserve, not the float, and I got pineapple flavor. And it's HEAVEN!!!!
I saw bits of the new Fantasyland construction going on (with that huge magical crane adding SO much to the enchanted ambience
) and what I saw looked neat. I'm still not sure if the "forced-perspective" trick with the Beast's castle is going to work or not. It didn't look like a TOY castle at any rate. And of course my own perspective is colored with what I know about its dimensions. It's sure a cool-looking castle though. I didn't ride Dumbo (lines are way too long - same reason I didn't ride Peter Pan's Flight this trip) so I didn't see anything over the fences, unfortunately.One more thing - I saw the "new" Enchanted Tiki Room. And it's a billion times better than when Iago ran the place. For the first time, I felt like I was inside an enchanted, cozy area where wonderful things were happening. The thunderstorm was cool, and the birds were beautiful and charming. I will agree with some here though that the lip-syncing of the flowers was off; that was very noticeable, and ought to be fixed pronto by TDO . But otherwise the Tiki Room was wonderful - it was the first time I'd seen the show in person - and I'm so glad Disney made the decision to bring back the classic version. It holds up beautifully and the Tiki Room was one of the highlights of my visit.
So that's all for now. I'm off to take a nap in my non-Sealy Posturepedic bed
and try to recover. Thanks for reading! :wave:
