Trip Report "BROOM BROOM!" A trip from a DIFFERENT perspective

Introduction

WARNING: The first three posts will be very text-heavy. I promise there will be many photos after that!

We just got back from another wonderful trip! We attended the Flower and Garden Festival, enjoyed much food and beverage, celebrated a birthday, visited family, and had a fabulous time! This trip was different from all previous trips for one significant reason, which will be revealed later.

WHO: Bee (me) and M (my DW)...and surprise guests
WHERE: The WDW Swan, with a quick trip to visit M's parents in Jacksonville
WHEN: May 22-27, 2018
WHY: To celebrate M's birthday, to enjoy one last trip before our APs expire, and...because we wanted to go!

The original version of this trip was to occur in July to take advantage of M having PTO for July 4. It was all booked and ready to go, and we were able to use points for half of the flights and a third of the hotel nights. However, I got offered an ensemble role in The Hunchback of Notre Dame in New Jersey in July shortly after we booked the original trip, so we had to adjust our plans.

And here is the PTR link: One La-ast Ti-ime (Another Swolphin Sandwich!) (This time with POINTS!)

To be continued

 

[bee]

Day 5, cont.

MIL and FIL had decided to join us at the last minute, so this was the only FP we could get together. M and I had one for Soarin' for just us but we'd already ridden it on this trip, so we offered to change ours to something we could all do together. But M's mom insisted we ride (her words) "the best ride ever," so M and I entered the Soarin' FP queue.

I parked outside the theater and we got the first row in the center again! Woohoo!

We picked up my scooter and said goodbye to M's parents for the time being. We had a dinner reservation outside the park but we would meet them again later to watch the fireworks together.

BROOM BROOM!

Up next: Returning to an old favorite for dinner. Will it be as good as last time?

 

[bee]

Day 5, cont.

We showered and changed into attire more suited for a signature restaurant than for a sweaty park, and scooted down to the first floor of the Swan for our reservation at Il Mulino. I parked my scooter outside the entrance and we checked in at the desk. We were seated soon and had a minute to look at the menu before Howie, our server, greeted us.

We both went with the Stemmari Nero d'avola, which was the red on tap.

Don't worry, this was taken near the end of the meal. The pour was much more generous than this!

BREAD! Always good bread!

Complimentary appetizer: eggplant and some kind of meat (that we did not eat, obviously)

BREEEEEEEEEEEAD!!!!!!!

Howie was an excellent server and was great at answering our questions and providing recommendations.

I had the Penne rigate:

And another view after it had been covered in CHEESE:

M had the Rigatoni con funghi:

These were both SO. GOOD. We actually managed to finish EVERYTHING.

I don't know how but I forgot about the complimentary limoncello at the end!

YUM YUM!!!

It was another successful dinner at Il Mulino. The food, wine, service, and atmosphere were all great and we will definitely be back again.

Up next: IllumiNations, for the third time this trip!

 

[bee]

Day 5, cont.

We made our way back to the park for the last time ( ). We grabbed a spot on the bridge between France and UK for the four of us to watch the fireworks. It was around 8:30 (half an hour until the show) so there were still plenty of spots, but we wanted to make sure we got a good one and had enough room for all of us to enjoy it. The elevated spot on the bridge was actually perfect for me since I was in the scooter and not at standing height.

MIL and FIL were finishing up a showing of the France movie and they joined us shortly.

At one point while we were saving our spot a mom tried to shove her kids in between M and me so they could watch the show. M pointedly said, "We're all together," and she let out this dramatic sigh like we were denying her kids their right to watch the fireworks. 1) There are SO many good places from which to watch. 2) We have been here since 8:30 saving this spot because this is where we wanted to be. 3) You are making your own kids uncomfortable with your behavior. There was also a group to my left complaining loudly enough for me to hear that I was taking up too much space on my scooter and they were stuck behind a tree as a result. REALLY, people?? No one is forcing you to stand there. And believe me, if I could have gotten around without that thing I would have JUMPED (literally!) at the opportunity!

But soon the show began and we were able to forget about the bad behavior of our fellow guests. I took A LOT of photos this time so...

THE EARTH

Up next: MORE ILLUMINATIONS!!!

 

[fractal]

I always forget about the restaurants in The Swan & Dolphin. Il Mulino looks great!

Rude people suck. Love the Illuminations pics!

 

[bee]

It’s opening night of Hunchback! I will try to get this report wrapped up next week. Thanks in advance for your patience!

 

[fractal]

It’s opening night of Hunchback! I will try to get this report wrapped up next week. Thanks in advance for your patience!

Knock 'em dead!

 

[bee]

Knock 'em dead!

Thanks! We had a full house and got an immediate standing ovation! So glad to be a part of this production!

 

[LadyBelle]

It’s opening night of Hunchback! I will try to get this report wrapped up next week. Thanks in advance for your patience!

Break a leg!

 

[dizfan917]

Thanks! We had a full house and got an immediate standing ovation! So glad to be a part of this production!

congratulations!! it's an amazing show!! enjoy the run.

 

[MinnieM123]

Thanks! We had a full house and got an immediate standing ovation! So glad to be a part of this production!

That's very impressive, especially for opening night! Big congratulations to you and your fellow Hunchback members.

 

[Zipadeelady]

Congratulations on a full opening night!! I'm so excited that you are a part of it!!!!

 

[becca_]

Congratulations, bee!

 

[bee]

Break a leg!

congratulations!! it's an amazing show!! enjoy the run.

That's very impressive, especially for opening night! Big congratulations to you and your fellow Hunchback members.

Congratulations on a full opening night!! I'm so excited that you are a part of it!!!!

Congratulations, bee!

Thanks, all! It was a great first weekend.

 

[bee]

Thanks for your patience, everyone! Here is the next TR post!

Day 5, cont.

More IllumiNations photos!

And with that, our last viewing of IllumiNations for the trip ended.

The four of us waited a few minutes for the initial mad rush out of the park to die down. Then we said our goodbyes as MIL and FIL headed to the front of the park and M and I exited out the International Gateway.

Up next: Finishing out the night strong!

 

[bee]

Day 5, cont.

As we BROOM BROOM-ed our way toward the Swan we caught yet another glimpse of fireworks.

As you can see in the photos above, there were fireworks coming from two different places in DHS. I'll admit I'm not a DHS person and am not as familiar with their nighttime shows. Anyone who is more familiar, please feel free to tell me what we were seeing!

We made it back to the hotel in time to see the end of the show from our 10th floor room!

We had a little last-minute packing to do before bed so we turned on the TV guide channel to see what was on. One of the listings said something about Buddy Holly so we turned to that, expecting to see a documentary or biopic about him. Instead it was an infomercial for DVDs of various 50s-60s musicians' performances.

We had a morning flight the next day so we would need to leave the Swan around 5:00am. We got into bed to hopefully get a few hours of sleep before our travel day.

Up next: Leaving!

 

[PacNWTigger]

Congrats Bee!! I'm so excited for you!

 

[Tuvalu]

Hmmm....awful lot of fireworks pics in this trip report from someone who claims to be indifferent about fireworks.....

 

[bee]

Congrats Bee!! I'm so excited for you!

Thank you!

Hmmm....awful lot of fireworks pics in this trip report from someone who claims to be indifferent about fireworks.....

Excuse me, this is SLANDER. I looooove IllumiNations, including the fireworks! As for the other fireworks show around property...while I am not likely to plan my day around seeing them multiple times per trip (or even once every trip), if I happen to find myself at a good viewing spot around the time of the show I'll happily stop and enjoy them.

 

[MinnieM123]

if I happen to find myself at a good viewing spot around the time of the show I'll happily stop and enjoy them.

I'm like that, too. The good thing about the Swan's location is that you can see (at least part) of the EPCOT fireworks, followed by (part of) the fireworks from DHS. Of course, it depends upon where your room is located and all; but the central hotel location is fun for seeing some of the fireworks. (I don't seek them out either, but a lot of times I end up back in my hotel room by 9 PM, so I just happen to be there when they start.)

 

[DisSplash]

Congrats on Hunchback - that has to be such a rewarding feeling, especially after all that you've been through this year!
And I love all of the bread pics too!! Nothing better than bread .... ummmm.