Trip Report “Parents please supervise your children, and children please supervise your parents” 2018 Graduation Trip Report! *COMPLETE*

Well, it’s been three days, but I’m back from “The World”. Still trying to recover and catch up on sleep . I was pretty exhausted, but we had a great time! The Disney depression has officially kicked in, but I’m hoping this TR will help alleviate some of the pain.

For those of you who are just joining and are wanting to know the Who, When, Where, and Why, feel free to read my PTR!

https://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/the-captain-is-headed-home.940164/

This is my first TR, and the bar was set pretty high for first timers (cough cough @becca_ cough cough). Seriously, if you haven’t read her first TR, you need to! Anyways, I hope everyone bears with me and enjoys the 2,000+ pictures that I made, along with this TR!

Up next: Travel Day!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

EPCOT continued

RIP International Gateway. You’ll be hell when the Skyliner opens.

I think we may have stopped for some PP pictures along the way.

We stopped in the U.K. and glanced through the shops. I was going to buy a pack of the Mickey shaped Walkers shortbread cookies from the Tea Caddy, but quickly changed my mind when I saw the price. $5.99 for 2 little cookies?! The mouse doesn’t have full control of my wallet, at least not yet. They used to be regular shaped and only like $3.50 or something.

I wish they’d bring the Winnie the Pooh m&g back to the Toy Soldier.

Made it back to Future World.

Ka-Chow!

I’m sorry, but this topiary is so realistic. It might just be the best one.

On a side note, I finally watched Cars 3 the other day on Netflix. I mean it’s not great, but it’s a heck of a lot better than Cars 2. Admit it, that cash grab dumpster fire was and still is Pixar’s worst movie by a long shot.

Next up: Spaceship Earth

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Spaceship Earth

We were on in no time!

I think it’s funny how SIEMENS no longer sponsors SE (and Illuminations) and their name has been removed from the signs outside, but it’s still on the screen and still in the audio.

After we disembarked SE and before heading to the Land, I quickly went over to TT to check the single rider line. It was 20-30mins, so I passed.

This sign looks so cool at night.

We made it to LwtL and it was literally a walk-on! (big shock )

They need to turn this hidden Mickey around.

These were the only pictures I took. The sun was setting and the lighting inside the greenhouses was kind of dark.

It was around 8:30 by the time we got off LwtL. The plan was to watch Illuminations from Norway, then sprint to Frozen for EMH.

Not too bad.

This was as good as we were gonna get.

Up next: Illuminations: Reflections of Earth!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Illuminations!

“Good evening. On behalf of Walt Disney World, the place where dreams come true, we welcome all of you to Epcot and World Showcase”.

“We're gathered here tonight around the fire as people of all lands have gathered for thousands and thousands of years before us... to share the light... and to share a story. An amazing story as old as time itself, but still being written. And though each of us has our own individual stories to tell, a true adventure emerges when we bring them all together as one. We hope you enjoy our story tonight: Reflections of Earth”.

Up next: More Illuminations!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Illuminations continued

I tried to fight back the tears, but wasn’t successful. I just really love Illuminations. Everything from the water, fireworks, the globe, and the score are absolutely beautiful.

Illuminations fun fact I recently learned: Hans Zimmer was actually involved in the beginning of the scoring process!

As soon as the post show announcements began, it was a mad dash to Frozen!

The posted wait time was 10mins, but we ended up waiting close to 25-30.

It probably would have been 10mins if people paid attention when the line began to move.

Something really weird was going on with Sven’s right eye.

It was all solid green/blue. No dot or anything.

Next up: Last bit of Frozen

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Last bit of Frozen

Ok, I’ll admit that I like this particular Sven AA. It’s pretty cute.

I think my face says it all.

I mean the ride is cool, but it doesn’t belong in the Norway pavilion. You can also tell how cheaply made it was.

If you want to get technical, Frozen doesn’t have any ties to Norway. It’s influenced by the fairytale “The Snow Queen”, which is Danish, not Norwegian.

After we rode Fantasyland wannabe, M and L went to go walk around WS, so I headed to Test Track.

I made it to TT and jumped in the single rider line. I ended up waiting about 20mins.

This is one of those rides that’s so much better at night.

My car didn’t fare too well. I won like 1 test. And once again, I got someone else’s ride photo!

I then headed to the Land to meet back up with M and L so we could ride Soarin’.

Blurry, but my man Patrick!

Ok y’all, I really like the new film! Yes there are a few scenes where the cgi is noticeable, but it could be worse, like DMTNT worse. I think flying over the Great Wall, Monument Valley, and the Eiffel Tower is very realistic. I absolutely love how it ends at EPCOT! It’s so freaking beautiful! Also, I’m glad they kept the majority of the original score.

Overall, I think the new film is great! Not as good as Soarin’ over California, but it’s pretty darn close!

It was around 10:45 when we got off, and the wait time was only 10mins. I really wanted to hop back on, but I was getting tired and had special plans in the morning that involved me getting up extremely early, so we decided to call it a night and head on out.

L went on to the bus stop, but M and I took our time exiting.

Up next: Last bit of EPCOT

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Last bit of EPCOT

I remember being mesmerized by these when I was 2 years old. They still fascinate me to this day.

There is nothing more beautiful than Spaceship Earth at night!

Am I right, or am I right?

I told EPCOT goodnight and that I’d be back in a couple days.

M and I made it to the bus stop and were greeted by this hellacious line.

Our stop was #11, and you can see we weren’t even at #10! This wasn’t a shared bus night, there was just so many people going to ALL-Star Sports!

L was up front, so she got on the next bus, which took forever. At about 11:45, another bus arrived and we were able to get on. (standing of course)

Our driver, who’s name I can’t remember, talked on the intercom the entire time and was hilarious! He said he used to be a stand up comedian. As we departed EPCOT, he informed us that we’d be arriving at Disney Springs very soon!

The guy was pretty young, I’d say mid to upper 20s, and said including him, there are only 5 WDW bus drivers under 40. He then went on to say that EPCOT is referred to as “God’s waiting room” because that’s where all the bus drivers ages 75+ are assigned to.

This dude had everyone laughing, especially when he got on a tangent about how cheap Disney is and that they’ll do anything to save a dollar.

L had an entertaining ride back too. I believe she said her driver told everyone the louder they screamed and yelled, the faster he’d drive.

After waiting for over an hour, we finally arrived home well past midnight. L was passed out, and I was ready to do the same.

5:45 would be here soon, so I tried to get as much sleep as I could, but I was too excited for what awaited me the next day.

Next up: Day 3

 

[Captain Barbossa]

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Wednesday May 23rd: MK

My alarm went off at 5:45, but I didn’t get out of bed until 5:55. I quietly got ready, trying not to wake M and L, and was out the door by 6:12.

Good morning ALL-Star Sports!

It only takes 3 mins to walk to the bus stop from our room, so I got there at 6:15.

I had all the bus stops to myself.

I’m not gonna lie, it felt pretty cool.

A few minutes later, a family of 3 got in line behind me, so my time alone came to an end.

The bus arrived right on time!

Actually it arrived at 6:29, so it was a minute early!

We had to stop at Music and Movies, but luckily there was only 5-6 people at Music and there was no one at Movies.

We were then on the way to MK!

I pretty much had the back of the bus to myself.

Wadup CS construction

Up next: Arriving at MK

 

[MinnieM123]

We were then on the way to MK!

Only once in all the years I've gone to WDW, did I actually have a bus all to myself!! That's how memorable it was to me, because it was such a rare thing indeed!! So nice to stretch out and enjoy the scenery out the window--no noise in the bus, etc. I'll never forget it!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Arriving at MK

I was so excited! I’d been waiting for this day for years!

Most of you already know this, but World Drive is a mess!

We soon arrived at Magic Kingdom!

I was able to get this nice shot of the Richard F. Irvine.

Words nor pictures can fully describe how beautiful and amazing sunrises at MK are.

Even though there was like nobody here, getting through security was a pain in the you know what. I swear as long as you are capable of breathing, you’re automatically qualified to work security at MK. No intelligence required!

Anyways, I made it through!

Caught monorail pink (I think) leaving the station on the resort loop.

While I was waiting, I overheard this grumpy old CM complaining about how he hates working at WDW. He said that he hates WDW, he hates working at MK, he hates his fellow CMs, and most of all, he hates all the guests.

A direct quote from Mr. Hateful while he was conversing with a CM that he probably hated:

“I tell you what, I’m this close to blowing up! I don’t care if it’s a guest or whoever, but if someone asks me one more question that I think is stupid, I’m gonna blow the hell up, and I don’t care who witnesses it! Hopefully it’ll be bad enough that they’ll fire me! Then I won’t have to work here anymore!”

I couldn’t believe what I just heard.

First of all, if you hate your job that much, don’t let it all build up inside of you and wait for an opportunity to “blow the hell up” with a guest. Just quit. No need to ruin their day just because you hate your job.

And secondly, depending on what you do, I know that being a CM isn’t the greatest/easiest job in the world. I know they put up with a lot of crap, but when you’re at work, don’t advertise your problems out loud so everyone can hear about it. It’s rude, disrespectful, and it makes yourself look like a jerk. That crap has to be left at home.

If anyone is wondering, the guy’s name was Henry, and he was working the MB scanners. Also, he was using a walker. I really hope he’s quit, for the sake of other guest.

Let’s see, where was I? Oh yes, why was I at the Magic Kingdom so early?

Happy Graduation to me!

I’ve been waiting to do “The Magic Behind Our Steam Trains” tour forever, and today was the day!

Up next: “The Magic Behind Our Steam Trains” tour!

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Only once in all the years I've gone to WDW, did I actually have a bus all to myself!! That's how memorable it was to me, because it was such a rare thing indeed!! So nice to stretch out and enjoy the scenery out the window--no noise in the bus, etc. I'll never forget it!

It was such a pleasant and memorable ride.

 

[becca_]

Oh how cool! I seriously need to do another tour!! The last one I went on was for my 16th birthday trip... 4 whole years ago (and like 7 trips in between then and now!)

 

[MinnieM123]

First of all, if you hate your job that much, don’t let it all build up inside of you and wait for an opportunity to “blow the hell up” with a guest. Just quit. No need to ruin their day just because you hate your job.

And secondly, depending on what you do, I know that being a CM isn’t the greatest/easiest job in the world. I know they put up with a lot of bs, but when you’re at work, don’t advertise your problems out loud so everyone can hear about it. It’s rude, disrespectful, and makes yourself look like an a$$. That crap has to be left at home.

Yes, his outburst was uncalled for, within earshot of guests. That sort of discussion is best saved for the employee break room, and only with trusted friends at that. No matter where you work in life, there will be times that you hate your job, but you never allow customers to hear that.

 

[fractal]

Arriving at MK


View attachment 293356
I was so excited! I’d been waiting for this day for years!

Most of you already know this, but World Drive is a mess!
View attachment 293357
View attachment 293369

We soon arrived at Magic Kingdom!
View attachment 293361
I was able to get this nice shot of the Richard F. Irvine.

Words nor pictures can fully describe how beautiful and amazing sunrises at MK are.
View attachment 293362

Even though there was like nobody here, getting through security was a pain in the you know what. I swear as long as you are capable of breathing, you’re automatically qualified to work security at MK. No intelligence required!

Anyways, I made it through!
View attachment 293363View attachment 293364


Caught monorail pink (I think) leaving the station on the resort loop.
View attachment 293365

While I was waiting, I overheard this grumpy old CM complaining about how he hates working at WDW. He said that he hates WDW, he hates working at MK, he hates his fellow CMs, and most of all, he hates all the guests.

A direct quote from Mr. Hateful while he was conversing with a CM that he probably hated:

“I tell you what, I’m this close to blowing up! I don’t care if it’s a guest or whoever, but if someone asks me one more question that I think is stupid, I’m gonna blow the hell up, and I don’t care who witnesses it! Hopefully it’ll be bad enough that they’ll fire me! Then I won’t have to work here anymore!

I couldn’t believe what I just heard.

First of all, if you hate your job that much, don’t let it all build up inside of you and wait for an opportunity to “blow the hell up” with a guest. Just quit. No need to ruin their day just because you hate your job.

And secondly, depending on what you do, I know that being a CM isn’t the greatest/easiest job in the world. I know they put up with a lot of bs, but when you’re at work, don’t advertise your problems out loud so everyone can hear about it. It’s rude, disrespectful, and makes yourself look like an a$$. That crap has to be left at home.

If anyone is wondering, the guy’s name was Henry, and he was working the MB scanners. Also, he was using a walker. I really hope he’s quit, for the sake of other guest.

Let’s see, where was I? Oh yes, why was I at the Magic Kingdom so early?
View attachment 293366
Happy Graduation to me!
View attachment 293367
I’ve been waiting to do “The Magic Behind Our Steam Trains” tour forever, and today was the day!

Up next: “The Magic Behind Our Steam Trains” tour!

Henry needs some pixie dust (or a pink slip).

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Oh how cool! I seriously need to do another tour!! The last one I went on was for my 16th birthday trip... 4 whole years ago (and like 7 trips in between then and now!)

This was my first time doing any tour at WDW. There's so many more that I'd like to go on, and some of them aren't bad in price either. You should definitely find one to book for your next trip!

Yes, his outburst was uncalled for, within earshot of guests. That sort of discussion is best saved for the employee break room, and only with trusted friends at that. No matter where you work in life, there will be times that you hate your job, but you never allow customers to hear that.

Exactly! I don't care what's going on with your job, nor do I want to hear you gripe about it, so when you're at work, you're at work, so shut up and put a smile on your face. Or quit. Either one.

Henry needs some pixie dust (or a pink slip).

I'm gonna go with the pink slip. All the pixie dust in the world wouldn't be enough to straighten Henry out.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Start of the tour!

The tour started promptly at 7:30. It wasn’t a huge group, maybe 12 people. I was hoping that I’d be as lucky as @DisAl and have the whole tour to myself, but I wasn’t.

This was our tour guide, Kaitlyn, and she was awesome!

She was from Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, which is outside of Philly, and visited Strasburg frequently as a kid, so she was very familiar with steam locomotives.

First, we began to enter Main Street.

There’s no one here!!

I’d never been inside MK prior to opening, so I’d never seen Main Street empty before! It was soooo beautiful!

Not knowing when I’d see it like this again, I took in and savored every moment. Such a magical and memorable sight!

City Hall looked so good basking in the morning sun!

One last glance before it turns into a chaotic mess.

Up next: More tour!

 

[MinnieM123]

Really excited to hear more about this tour -- some day, I'd like to go on that, because I'm a train fan, especially the old steam engine trains.

Perhaps you'll cover this in your TR, but did you have any difficulty getting into the park on time for this tour? I'm only asking because I know the lines (through security, etc.) can take a long time with so many people. (I wish they had a separate queue for two groups of early morning guests: those going on tours, and guests with breakfast reservations. (I've never done either--I'm just thinking it might be helpful to some.)

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Really excited to hear more about this tour -- some day, I'd like to go on that, because I'm a train fan, especially the old steam engine trains.

Perhaps you'll cover this in your TR, but did you have any difficulty getting into the park on time for this tour? I'm only asking because I know the lines (through security, etc.) can take a long time with so many people. (I wish they had a separate queue for two groups of early morning guests: those going on tours, and guests with breakfast reservations. (I've never done either--I'm just thinking it might be helpful to some.)

In terms of crowd levels waiting to go through security, it wasn't bad at all. Of course I went through the no bags line, but I don't think the bag check lines were bad either. It really does help since guest who've taken the monorail have already gone through security.

 

[Captain Barbossa]

Tour continued

Kaitlyn pointed out a hidden Mickey that I’d never seen before. Can y’all spot it?

She said this is one of the hardest that guest typically miss.

The train had arrived, so we headed upstairs.

I was really hoping that Lilly or Roy would be our tour train, but it turned out to be Roger.

Kaitlyn was talking about some facts and history of the WDWRR along the way, but I know pretty much everything about the WDWRR, so I didn’t really pay a whole lot of attention.

We briefly stopped at Frontierland Station to observe a red block signal, which was weird because there was no other locomotive on the line. We then continued to Fantasyland Station.

A little blurry...

...but we arrived at the junction.

Time to throw the switch and put Roger in reverse.

Sorry, no pics heading to the roundhouse. Photo sensitive part of the tour , which I don’t understand because you can see everything, which mostly consists of trees, if your standing at the right spot in Storybook Circus.

After our trip backwards, we were at the roundhouse!

Up next: More Tour!

 

[MinnieM123]

Sorry, no pics heading to the roundhouse. Photo sensitive part of the tour , which I don’t understand because you can see everything, which mostly consists of trees, if your standing at the right spot in Storybook Circus.

You're kidding me, right? You're all on a behind the scenes tour of the train operation, and they don't let you take a photo of the roundhouse? What the what?!! (The roundhouse would be one of the highlights.)