Trip Report A Very Merry and very expensive 50th Birthday Celebration

Who: Brian and I
When: November 12-19
Where: Pop Century and Cabana Bay
Why: My 50th Birthday

Hello again everyone! My husband and I were able to make it back to Orlando again this year to celebrate my 50th birthday. I have to be honest I was not looking forward to turning 50 this year so a figured spending some time in the sun at 2 of my favourite places would help make it a lot more magical .



Our flight left at 2pm and we had a connection to catch in Ottawa. Due to the weather our flight from our home to Ottawa came in a bit late so it was a race to get to customs. When we got there they would not let us through because our luggage had not been transferred yet. I think I've mentioned before that I have really bad anxiety so I had a panic attack in the airport. It was embarrassing but I cannot control it and it can be quite scary. I was shaking and couldn't catch my breathe and trying hard to keep it together. Luckily for me Brian was able to get someone to help us with the luggage situation and they finally let us on the plane. The airline ended up holding the plane for all of the passengers that were running late so thank goodness for small miracles.

The good news is when we were at the airport in our hometown I saw someone who knows me from my job and she works for the airline we flew with so she had our tickets upgraded to 1st class on both flights! What a wonderful surprise that was for both of us.

Sunset

Menu for 1st class


We played it safe and we both got the cheese and fruit tray and I got a margarita because I really needed it .


We arrived in Orlando at 7:20pm and this is the next picture we took almost 2 hours later...


We quickly checked in, dropped off our luggage and hopped on a bus to Disney Springs to get a late dinner at Polite Pig.


After a delicious meal we did a little shopping until 11pm and then it was time to head back to Pop to unpack and get some sleep.
We really wanted these 2 decorations but they definitely would not fit in our luggage .

 

[Tiki Traveler]

Not strange at all! I love doll houses! Some of my favorite things in museums are the miniature rooms downstairs at The Chicago Art Institute, the Fairy Castle at the Museum of Science and industry and Queen Mary’s dollhouse at Windsor! I could spend hours at each exhibit.
If the Queen could be into miniatures - I think it’s okay for the rest of us!

The Strong Museum, a children’s museum in Rochester, NY also has a large collection of doll houses.

My grandfather made each of his grand families a doll house. My cousins’ doll houses were so large he built tables on wheels for them. Due to space and updating issues I donated my doll house a few years ago. Hopefully someone else is enjoying it!

Great photos of your trip too!

 

[Beastly74]

The Strong Museum, a children’s museum in Rochester, NY also has a large collection of doll houses.

My grandfather made each of his grand families a doll house. My cousins’ doll houses were so large he built tables on wheels for them. Due to space and updating issues I donated my doll house a few years ago. Hopefully someone else is enjoying it!

Great photos of your trip too!

I know there are a lot more miniature stores and museums in the larger cities of Canada (like Toronto) but there is nothing like that around here. I am lucky enough that every spring there is a miniature show in my town that I look forward to each year. I see some of the displays that people have and I am in awe. It is very expensive hobby and I know I will never get the money back that I have put into my collection but that is okay because it brings me a lot of joy. Someday I am sure it will bring someone else the same amount of happiness.

Thanks so much for following .

 

[Beastly74]

We did head back to World Showcase but not before visiting Journey of Water to view it at night.


I don't have lot of pictures of the different pavilions but we did spend quite a bit of time exploring each one and browsing the shops.



I wanted to try the pretzel bread pudding in Germany so we stopped there. I will definitely get this again!

As you can tell I have a really big sweet tooth .



I was hoping to ride FEA before the fireworks so we jumped in line but groups of 5-10 people kept getting in the LL so after 20 minutes of barely moving we jumped out of line. By this time there were not many good spots left for the fireworks show so we had a terrible view.
Bad photo and Brian's finger is in the top corner lol.

Hopefully we will get to see the show again someday.

We actually left Epcot before the show ended and made our way to the Skyliner. We were glad we did because we watched the crowd heading our way after and it was huge sea of people. Now normal people would go back to their resort and get ready for bed after a 14 hour day but we jumped on a bus bound for Disney Springs and got dinner at Polite Pig again.

The darker pink drink in the background is mine and I forget the name but I think it had gin in it. Well I downed it because it was sweet and did not taste like alcohol at all. After I drank it so fast the waitress came over and asked if I needed some water - she looked a bit worried .

All in all it was an amazing day and the weather was perfect.
35,963 steps (this was the most we walked in a single day all week)

 

[Beastly74]

Thursday, Nov 14th

I was up again at 6:30am and Brian followed shortly after. I did not bother with any ILL or VQ's this morning because I had a plan that I really hoped would work. We left the room at 7:30 and had no problem making early entry at 8:30. I believe they let us in about 8:15am.
On our way . Love the skyliner!




We decided to head to Slinky Dog first because last year we rope dropped MMRR and then had to wait a long time to ride Slinky Dog. It was still a 30 minute wait but better than the almost hour wait it got up to for the rest of the day.






Next up was MMRR and it was a 30 minute wait. Actually the 1st four rides we did in the morning were all about 30 minute waits.

 

[Tiki Traveler]

35,963 steps (this was the most we walked in a single day all week)

And you got up early again the next day!

 

[Beastly74]

And you got up early again the next day!

I have no idea how we managed to get out of bed the next morning lol. I know I took a couple pain-killers to help me. At the end of our trip I admitted to Brian that I don't think I will be able to do long days like that for much longer.

 

[Beastly74]

After MMRR we stopped for Starbucks because I was looking forward to trying the carrot cake cookie for breakfast . I was disappointed to find out that it was seasonal so I ended up with something a bit smaller. I can't remember what it is called but thankfully it was pretty good. We also each got a caramel crunch frappuccino.



We sat for a bit and enjoyed the view when Max suddenly appeared .



Once we got our sugar rush it was time for TOT. It is a good thing the wait was 30 minutes because it gave our stomachs time to settle. The wait went by fast because the line was constantly moving.






It was a good ride but not as many drops as we would like.

 

[Beastly74]

Next up was RNRC and then we ran into Donald .



Watch that curb Donald!


On our way to our next destination.


So my plan for this day was to do single rider line for ROTR. I was a bit worried that it would not be offered when we were there but thankfully it was and we only waited 20 minutes compared to the 50 minute wait time.
They rush you through the Stormtrooper area but we managed to sneak a picture.




After our capture followed by our exciting rescue we had worked up an appetite. We headed to ABC Commissary and I got the California burger (plant-based) and a drink called happy daze and Brian got a chicken burger and a strawberry lemonade slushy.


The wait times for most of the rides were getting higher but that is okay because I had a plan for the afternoon. It was definitely busier this year than it was during the same time frame last year.

 

[cgersic]

I'm sure this has been addressed somewhere, but how much of the queue do you miss in the single rider line for ROTR? I've also heard they send all single riders in the same group - can you confirm? You're getting me so excited for my trip with these fabulous photos

 

[Tuvalu]

I'm sure this has been addressed somewhere, but how much of the queue do you miss in the single rider line for ROTR? I've also heard they send all single riders in the same group - can you confirm? You're getting me so excited for my trip with these fabulous photos

I can answer this.

It depends.

The first time we did single rider, we skipped the queue and entered into the BB-8 and Rey preshow, then the transport, then the Stormtrooper room. We were both assigned the same color group in the holding cell.

The second time we skipped the queue and both pre-shows, entering into the Stormtrooper room. We were split into different color groups and holding cells.

 

[cgersic]

I can answer this.

It depends.

The first time we did single rider, we skipped the queue and entered into the BB-8 and Rey preshow, then the transport, then the Stormtrooper room. We were both assigned the same color group in the holding cell.

The second time we skipped the queue and both pre-shows, entering into the Stormtrooper room. We were split into different color groups and holding cells.

Bummer. I have some first timers, and I don't want them to miss out on the preshows. Looks like we'll be waiting standby as I just don't want them to miss the immersion. Thanks as always Tuvalu! (when I was typing this, it put an "e" at the end, and made me think of Darstarr calling you True Value I miss her!)

 

[meggo819]

Bummer. I have some first timers, and I don't want them to miss out on the preshows. Looks like we'll be waiting standby as I just don't want them to miss the immersion. Thanks as always Tuvalu! (when I was typing this, it put an "e" at the end, and made me think of Darstarr calling you True Value I miss her!)

It would be worth asking, I think! There’s usually a CM holding a sign for the single rider line and I imagine they’d be able to tell you how it’s currently working.

 

[Beastly74]

I'm sure this has been addressed somewhere, but how much of the queue do you miss in the single rider line for ROTR? I've also heard they send all single riders in the same group - can you confirm? You're getting me so excited for my trip with these fabulous photos

For our experience we ended up entering into the stormtrooper room and we were separated into different groups. Actually this was our experience both times we did single rider line this trip but I have read about other people getting to see the preshow.
Thank you for following and I am glad you are enjoying the photos .

 

[Beastly74]

I can answer this.

It depends.

The first time we did single rider, we skipped the queue and entered into the BB-8 and Rey preshow, then the transport, then the Stormtrooper room. We were both assigned the same color group in the holding cell.

The second time we skipped the queue and both pre-shows, entering into the Stormtrooper room. We were split into different color groups and holding cells.

Thank you Tuvalu .

 

[Beastly74]

My plan for the afternoon was to enjoy the shows at Hollywood Studios.
Beautiful wreath


We started with Beauty and the Beast.






One of my favourite Disney movies.

Next we headed over to Muppets and I am so glad that we took the time to enjoy this show since it will be closing soon.

Who is that cranky looking woman on the bottom right? I was probably telling Brian to hurry up.


Happy that we finally got a decent picture of Statler and Waldorf. I grew up watching the Muppets and although this show was not a must do (sorry if I offended anyone) I always enjoyed it when I took the time to relax and sit down lol.

 

[Beastly74]

I suggested the Frozen show to Brian and he was not really interested because he didn't enjoy it the last time. But I convinced him to give it another chance and we ended up loving it. The difference was definitely due to the storytellers. They were hilarious .
close-up of Olaf



Indiana Jones was next on the list. It is a shame that part of the show had to be cut (the boulder scene).


After that it was time to get another treat to share. A couple pics on our way,


Mickey brownie sundae


Then we decided to head back to Galaxy's Edge because we had missed riding Millennium Falcon,

We did single rider line to avoid the 40 minute wait.

Saw Chewbacca and Rey and snapped a blurry picture on the way to ROTR. We did single rider line again and this time we only waited less than 15 minutes.


We were both happy that they added the single rider line as an option. It can be a little awkward sometimes but worth it if you can get on the ride faster and ride twice in one day plus accomplish a lot more in your day. I was just glad luck was on our side and all of the single rider lines were shorter than the standard waits as we have waited longer before.

 

[erstwo]

I love the single rider line for Rise too! Overall - the wait time for Rise has gone down so much. It must be a combo of fewer DAS passes & people opting for single rider because I assume they still sell the same amount of ILL.

 

[Beastly74]

I love the single rider line for Rise too! Overall - the wait time for Rise has gone down so much. It must be a combo of fewer DAS passes & people opting for single rider because I assume they still sell the same amount of ILL.

I did notice this trip that the wait for Rise was a bit lower than usual but I think it still stayed at about 50 minutes most of the day. Definitely better than 90 or more minutes. I was so excited to test the single rider line and to be able to ride it twice in one day without having to panic at 7am trying to get a VQ was awesome .

 

[Beastly74]

I am so not ready for winter . Today felt like -16 celcius (3.2F) and that is just the beginning. The older I get the more I dislike the cold and snow. Love Christmas but wish I could stay home and watch Christmas shows all day rather than go outside .

We decided to get something to eat after another amazing ride and I wanted to eat at Backlot Express but when we went there they were out of the meal I wanted so we went back to ABC to have dinner.
So beautiful

Brian got the buffalo chicken grilled cheese and I got the shrimp tacos and another happy daze drink.



After our meal we rode MMRR again and then Brian was determined to beat me at TSMM and unfortunately he did end up winning.



Next up was Fantasmic and I absolutely love this show. The crowd's excitement is contagious and it just adds to the experience. We even got decent seats even though we only got there about 15 minutes before the show started. It probably helped that there were 2 shows that night and we went to the later one.

Mickey the "Rockstar"

So glad to see the dragon back .





Great way to end the night or were we done?

 

[Beastly74]

Today it feels like -18 celcius (-0.4F) and I want the warm weather back. But it is bright and sunny out and the snow that we have looks beautiful from the comfort of my warm and cozy home. By Wednesday the temperature is going back up to 12 celcius (53.6F) and rain.

We discussed leaving right after the show to make it down to DS for a late meal at Polite Pig again but we decided to stay at HS and take some pictures and browse the stores until they closed at 10:30pm. I am so glad we did as it was a very relaxing way to finish off our last night on Disney property.




I've said it before and I will say it again...I love love love the Christmas decorations at HS . The only issue with staying until the very end is you miss the last ride of the night on the skyliner (it closes exactly at 10:30pm I believe). We missed it by 5 minutes but thankfully we didn't have to wait long for a bus to take us home.

When we got back to the resort I made Brian do a photo shoot because I was not ready to call it a night. Some of the same photos but this time with my husband as the model in a few of them .


Even after another long day following his crazy wife around he is still smiling .


And we are back.


It was a fantastic day and the weather was perfect. Total steps for the day = 25,637 and we started at 7:30am and got back to our room about 11:30pm. I was sad that we were leaving Disney World but looking forward to heading to Universal for our next adventure.