Trip Report Making Lemonade out of Lemons Fractal Family Trip Report - Completed

I think we can all agree that so far 2020 has been one big sour lemon.

For those that did not read my Pre-Trip report; my entire family (Val-wife, Alex - oldest daughter, Sterg - son, Toni - youngest daughter) has recovered from the Covid-19 virus. Myself, Val, Sterg and Toni got it in March and Alex in April while working as a nurse. Val had it worse with a fever for a couple days and flu like symptoms for about a week. The rest of us were either asymptomatic or had minor symptoms.

Add to that the mental stress of living in a society dealing with this pandemic, Toni missing out on a big chunk of her High School Senior Year and her last dance recital (where she was going to take on a major role as Jasmine), work reductions for Sterg and high stress work conditions for Alex on the front line. Yes, 2020 has sure been one big sourpuss.

But, as the saying goes; "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!"

It just so happened that last year I made a reservation to attend the annual AHEPA convention in Walt Disney World, just as I did in 2017. We were going to stay at the Grand Destino Towers but that seemed very much in jeopardy when AHEPA (which is a charitable organization I'm involved with. Like a Greek version of the Knights of Columbus or Lions Club.) cancelled their convention. Soon after however, I received an email that Disney would honor our reservation in July. This was pretty tempting since we had convention rates and discounts on tickets. Long story short, we decided to go. We felt that having already had the virus gave us an extra level of protection and we knew that Disney would handle the health risks properly. In addition, we later found out that our rooms were moved from Grand Destino to the Contemporary in order to accommodate the LA Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks. Sterg's and my dream of playing Marco Polo with the Greek Freak and LeBron James in the pool were quickly dashed. But who could say no to staying at The Contemporary for $175 a night?

We were a go! It was frustrating however because although we had a resort reservation we did not have park tickets. We also didn't have a "park pass" which was needed during this reopening of WDW. We had to wait for all that to open and I had serious doubts it would by the time our first day at the resort (July 20th) rolled around. I decided to book flights without tickets or park passes. Southwest had roundtrip flights from Philly to Orlando for $90 plus if you had to cancel you got that credit for a future flight. No brainer. This was turning out to be the cheapest Disney trip we have taken as a family! Soon after I was open to buy tickets and book Park Passes. We had started to squeeze that lemon and add it's juice to our pitcher of cold water.

Now for the Cast of our adventure.

Myself - Chris/Fractal. A lover of Disney Parks for the many memories it has given me over the years with my family, the way it helps me completely unwind from my job, and how it taps into my creative side and challenges my skills as a photographer.

Here I am with my crazy kids at Christmas.

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Val - my beautiful wife. Not the biggest fan of Disney but in the end she was on board. I think secretly she likes it more than she lets on. I will make it up to her with a trip more to her liking.

Here she is with Alex.

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Alex - our oldest. Now a traveling nurse. Alex is like me in many ways but as she's getting older and more responsible I'm starting to see her take on a number of Val's traits. She's a good mix and always a delight to be with.

From a trip to Colorado we took last year;

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Sterg, aka Fractal Jr. One word to describe Sterg - catalyst - he just makes things happen. He creates reactions both good and bad. He graduated last year from Penn State. He was a captain on the Swim Team but not without drama. He had to miss his promising senior year of swimming when a series of concussions (all outside the water) forced him to medically retire. PSU handled it very well as he helped the team from the sidelines. He now works as a digital marketing consultant as well as helping his cousin get his music career off the ground. Never a dull moment when Sterg is around!

with our dog Prince (Charming).

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Toni - For long time readers of my reports you know that Toni and I have a special Disney connection. Many times she would be the only one up early with me to tackle the parks at opening. We have had many great adventures together in the Disney bubble. She's now technically an adult (how did that happen?) so I was going to find out this trip if the magic was still there. She's going to attend Clemson University starting next month and I couldn't be prouder.

Toni in front of the Theater her Recital was supposed to perform at.

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So Covid-19 made our family suffer in many ways, but we took that lemon, squeezed it's juice out into our water pitcher, now we just needed a little Disney sugar to make our Lemonade complete.

Coming up - Our trip begins with a WDW meet-up before our flight even leaves the ground!
 

coachwnh

Well-Known Member
This is my favorite part of this scene. Donald losing all of his feathers from the tornado.

I totally agree with your assessment of the ride. There is so much happening that you really can miss a lot. Crystal first told me to watch Donald in this scene and the cow next to the "Tornado" coaster. Every room is so different. Glad I didn't peek online before we rode. Im sure the videos do it no justice. Its no thrill ride, but its definitely a fun ride!
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Up near FirstEnergy Stadium.

Great, I work downtown - if I'm not in my Allentown office. We could also meet at Mike's Sandwich shop for lunch once you start going back.
I have no idea how you are able to go back in such detail to do this report. Im just amazed. Had I not done mine live, our trip would have been lost. My family brings things up daily that I already forgot. Im really enjoying this. Its like we are there again.

Jot some notes, ask the kids and actually the photos stir my memory the most.


You had me singing "you've got a friend in me" with the Toy Story Land pictures! I love the view from the top where you see all the tinker toys put together. Love!!!

Anytime I can make someone sing "you've got a friend in me" is a good day for me! Thanks!

Oh man, your throwback photos of The Great Movie Ride gave me all the feels, but your review of Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway more than made up for it. I can't wait to ride it!

I do miss GMR but was ready for a worthy replacement and I strongly feel we got one.

It seems like this ride is similar in some respects to DLP’s Ratatouille, so I am looking forward to riding it!

Same ride system I believe. Lots of fun!

For You Page. That's all I look at on TikTok. It just shows me popular tiktoks that it thinks I'll like based on other things I've liked. I could seriously scroll through it all day long and belly laugh. If Sterg is getting a lot of views, I won't be surprised if he pops up there! I followed him though, so that increases the chances 🙈

By the way, you're making me want to try out the 24mm lens! I don't think I'll be buying a lens this year, but I might rent it.

Got it. Also - I'm not responsible for the crazy stuff he puts on there!

If you rent it you will buy it.


This is my favorite part of this scene. Donald losing all of his feathers from the tornado.

I totally agree with your assessment of the ride. There is so much happening that you really can miss a lot. Crystal first told me to watch Donald in this scene and the cow next to the "Tornado" coaster. Every room is so different. Glad I didn't peek online before we rode. Im sure the videos do it no justice. Its no thrill ride, but its definitely a fun ride!

I forgot about that! See, I don't remember everything.

Totally agree. You leave with a smile.
Thanks for all the great trip detail and photos. Between yours and @coachwnh TR, other than actually being there, you two have done a fantastic job of making one feel as though we were some how there with y’all.

My pleasure @Ghostdog !
That’s how he works. My wife was deciding between fast prime and fisheye. After looking at this thread and getting an unexpected bonus she decided on both! Be careful. ;)

Come to think of it, does she have a Marco lens? How about a tilt shift? :D
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The last time we were in DHS was summer of 2017. Before Toy Story Land, Before Galaxy's Edge and during the time Great Movie Ride was being converted into Mickey's Runaway Railway. We spent 3 or 4 hours in the park during our stay and it felt enough. The park has transformed itself and is now a full day, multi day destination. You could spend an entire day exploring GE or better yet going back and forth between GE and Toy Story Land. Once things get back to normal (and they will), you add in Fantasmic, Beauty and the Beast stage show, Indiana Jones stunt plus fireworks/night time show and it covers all the bases. We had a blast despite those reductions and without enjoying the beauty of the park lit up at night.

Great job Disney! Looks like you spent those $billion well. Here's hoping you get your investment back sooner rather than later!

Toni had such a great time she left the park clicking her heels and dancing!

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thumbs up from everyone on the way out.

I got an opportunity to take photos of the Skyliner. I never got a chance to ride in one but Val, Toni and Alex would later in the trip.

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Pretty empty bus stop. This was around 6:30.

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On the way back. Notice the plastic partitions between seats. Every seat had a number on it. I think 1 to 5 (or 6). As you entered the bus you/your group were assigned a number and told to sit in the seats with your number on it. There were also seats designated as "Not Available" to allow for proper distancing. You can see those to the right of Toni.
Standing on the bus was not allowed.

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We came back to our room and unpacked our delivery from Garden Grocer which included this Covid Stress relief kit. (Actually, the vodka was from the Markplace in the Contemporary.)

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Sterg enjoying a drink on the balcony.

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We made last minute plans to have dinner at Kona at 8:15pm so we scrambled to have all of us shower and get ready in time to grab the monorail for our quick trip.
The only problem was, when we went to get on the monorail we found out it had shutdown for the night! Now does that make any sense? Yes, Magic Kingdom was closed but if you're going to have the resort restaurants on the loop open late you should have the monorail on the loop also open. We were not too happy about that. Plan B was grabbing an Uber which we did.

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It was nice to be back at the Poly. My favorite trip may have been our 2013 trip when we stayed here. I still like the Beach and Yacht Club better but the Poly remains a very special place.

We explored the new lobby for a few minutes. Still like the old one better.

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Time to go upstairs. We had to wait until past 8:30 to be seated so I took a few snaps.

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Quick one of Toni. The official record here is that she's holding a drink in her other hand.

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and we were finally seated.

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cgersic

Well-Known Member
My favorite thing about the fish eye lens is that it gets so much in the frame! Not sure about the rounded edges, but I love all the stuff in the photo. The old lobby was also my favorite but I love the pics of this one. Nice to see the smiling faces!
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Our waiter at Kona was nothing special. First he was hard to understand and even more so talking through a mask and a plastic face shield; then he was wearing black plastic gloves that were half covered by his long sleeves. I couldn't hear much of what he was saying and felt I had to continuously ask him to repeat himself.

We ordered a couple sushi plates to get us started. They were expensive yet tasty but I got the feeling I was continuously being watched.

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Not a fan of the "eyeball" presentation at all.

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Didn't seem to bother Sterg who ordered a frozen type of drink.

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Val order some kind of tuity-fruity drink...

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And I think this was a Kona version of a Moscow mule. So far, so good.

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I can't remember what everyone else ordered. They were happy with their meal. I order the special - Salmon Steak and frankly I was underwhelmed. It tasted like the salmon was put on a metal plate and thrown in the boiler for 10 minutes. No seasoning, sauce or glaze. Kinda expected more for my $40.

Our incoherent waiter in his hazmat suit did surprisingly agree to take our photo. Perhaps it looked in focus behind the plastic shielding and his thick glasses.

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Everyone was very satisfied with their meal except me. I had told myself going in that I was going to order the steak - everyone raves about the steak at Kona. Somehow I ended up falling for the "Chef Special" salmon and I was disappointed. I know I talked about this before in one of my other trip reports, but here I go again because it's good advise that I didn't follow that night;

When you go to a steak house - order the steak
When you go to a seafood house - order fish (or lobster)

The point being, go with what the restaurant is know for, what they do best. Kona is known for their steak and I knew that and was prepared to order it but changed my mind at the table and paid the price of regret.

After dinner we decided to explore the Poly before heading back. I of course took some more photos.

This was a sad sight.

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Then we ventured outside to the pool area.

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Not exactly sure what Toni was doing here.

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We then order an Uber and made our way outside for the pickup.

Amazingly, the Uber driver covering Walt Disney World didn't really know how to go from the Poly to the Contemporary - even with GPS. We spent almost a half hour in his car changing directions and doing Uturns. OK then.
I think we could have walked back quicker.

After that adventure we made it back to the room and called it a night. Our favorite park from last trip was up on deck and we were excited to get to Animal Kingdom in the morning.

Overall, this was one of our best days at WDW we ever had. The next day may have actually topped it.


UP NEXT - Animal Kingdom overload and many more photos and videos. My Disney bromance with @coachwnh continues and some small but exciting new things!
 
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Nunu

Wanderluster
Premium Member
Our waiter at Kona was nothing special. First he was hard to understand and even more so talking through a mask and a plastic face shield; then he was wearing black plastic gloves that were half covered by his long sleeves. I couldn't hear much of what he was saying and felt I had to continuously ask him to repeat himself.

We ordered a couple sushi plates to get us started. They were expensive yet tasty but I got the feeling I was continuously being watched.

20200721-DSC08818-X3.jpg


20200721-DSC08819-X3.jpg


Not a fan of the "eyeball" presentation at all.

20200721-DSC08820-X3.jpg


Didn't seem to bother Sterg who ordered a frozen type of drink.

20200721-DSC08822-X3.jpg


Val order some kind of tuity-fruity drink...

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And I think this was a Kona version of a bourbon Old Fashion. So far, so good.

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I can't remember what everyone else ordered. They were happy with their meal. I order the special - Salmon Steak and frankly I was underwhelmed. It tasted like the salmon was put on a metal plate and thrown in the boiler for 10 minutes. No seasoning, sauce or glaze. Kinda expected more for my $40.

Our incoherent waiter in his hazmat suit did surprisingly agree to take our photo. Perhaps it looked in focus behind the plastic shielding and his thick glasses.

20200721-DSC08826-X3.jpg


Everyone was very satisfied with their meal except me. I had told myself going in that I was going to order the steak - everyone raves about the steak at Kona. Somehow I ended up falling for the "Chef Special" salmon and I was disappointed. I know I talked about this before in one of my other trip reports, but here I go again because it's good advise that I didn't follow that night;

When you go to a steak house - order the steak
When you go to a seafood house - order fish (or lobster)

The point being, go with what the restaurant is know for, what they do best. Kona is known for their steak and I knew that and was prepared to order it but changed my mind at the table and paid the price of regret.

After dinner we decided to explore the Poly before heading back. I of course took some more photos.

This was a sad sight.

20200721-DSC08828-X3.jpg


20200721-DSC08827-X3.jpg


Then we ventured outside to the pool area.

20200721-DSC08833-X3.jpg


20200721-DSC08830-X3.jpg


20200721-DSC08832-X3.jpg


Not exactly sure what Toni was doing here.

20200721-DSC08831-X3.jpg


We then order an Uber and made our way outside for the pickup.

Amazingly, the Uber driver covering Walt Disney World didn't really know how to go from the Poly to the Contemporary - even with GPS. We spent almost a half hour in his car changing directions and doing Uturns. OK then.
I think we could have walked back quicker.

After that adventure we made it back to the room and called it a night. Our favorite park from last trip was up on deck and we were excited to get to Animal Kingdom in the morning.

Overall, this was one of our best days at WDW we ever had. The next day may have actually topped it.


UP NEXT - Animal Kingdom overload and many more photos and videos. My Disney bromance with @coachwnh continues and some small but exciting new things!
You're right, "Eyeball Sushi" looks weird, at least it was tasty! 👀😄

I completely agree with ordering dishes that represent the restaurant best, like you said: steak at a steakhouse and so on. I've literally paid the price when trying new dishes and "expand" my tastes. I've gotten lucky a few times, but mostly, end up regretting my adventurous choices.

I see bread rolls in the background of your Old Fashion picture, were they good? :hungry:

We love visiting the Poly, there's something about that resort that makes us feel happy and relaxed. The family photo might be blurry, but anyone can see you all had a good time.
 

fractal

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Early morning Wednesday and we are off and running in Walt Disney World (minus Val who would join later)!

Good morning Pandora!

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Last time we were here was 2017 and things looks different to me. It would take me awhile to figure it out.

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We "B-lined" it straight to Flight of Passage. It was a lonely queue line. I asked Sterg if he forgot to put on his shorts. :rolleyes: He said something back about when I would wear cargo shorts that covered my shins.

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There's someone else in line!

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It was hard to take photos and keep up with the pace at the same time.

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This would be the first time I went through the "standby" queue. Previously I've only ridden fastpass which skips most of this.

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Such an amazing effect.

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So much rich detail! I was loving it and things slowed down enough to appreciate and photograph the imagineer's work.

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Getting closer! Sterg and Toni with matching Animal Kingdom wear.

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The pre-show has been changed. Not sure if it's because of Covid or because of people complaining about all the "ugh"s.

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Not one "ugh" - so much better!

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OK, we will...

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Toni was ready!

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Nothing different here. You were spaced by group which means there were empty seats between my trio and the next group.

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The ride was amazing (again)! - the only issue I had was having the glasses fog up because of the mask. It was very tempting to pull the mask down below your nose but we noticed those that did were scolded by a CM after the ride.

On the way out we were asked if we wanted to jump right back in line to ride again. Tempting but we passed.

OK, so what's next?

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