Celebrating Christmas at the Cape: A December 2009 Trip Report

tiaragirl · Jan 17, 2010

Love the picture with Tiana.. every time I see pictures of *her* she's absolutely gorgeous (as she was in the film).

I'm also appreciating your outfits, just sayin'.

I'm all about classy Disney looks (especially on MK day!).

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

Again, I’m not sure why we headed to Main Street, but once we were there we got a call from Brett’s parents who were in Toontown so we told them to stay put and we’d be around on the railroad shortly. This worked for us because we wanted to check the teardrop for possible rare characters anyway. And we’ve found morning is the best time for this.

Brett watched an old penny arcade movie while we waited for the train to come around.

We enjoyed the Big Thunder landscape from our train:

We arrived in Toontown to much fanfare. Marie, Foulfellow and Baloo had just come out to play. And Foulfellow was more than happy to lead us astray. If a CM hadn't stopped him, I think he would have led us all the way to Stromboli’s theatre.

I got some love from Marie and then Brett and Baloo tried to scare me.

The teardrop is always fun because you can meet all the characters back there in a matter of minutes. Hmmm. I just had a thought… once the new Fantasyland is built, I wonder where the new teardrop/training area will be located. Curious minds want to know! Shortly after we wrapped up with the teardrop characters, Brett’s fam came around the corner. We took a little break on this bench while Kathy met Marie.

After much debate we decided Adventureland should be our next stop so back on the railroad we went.

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

In Adventureland we headed straight for the Pirates of the Caribbean, which was pretty much walk-on. Chaos ensued when we left POTC. I don’t really know what was going on but no one could decide on what they wanted to do next. We crisscrossed back and forth across Adventureland enough times for me to lose count. So I just started taking pictures hither thither and yon. Until eventually we ended up in line for the Jungle Cruise.

Adventureland:

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

When we got off the Jungle Cruise we were stopped by one of the Disney Research team members. This is the first time I’d seen them outside of a ride. Usually we just see them at entrance turnstiles. We’re hoping one day we get stopped by one asking questions about character meet and greets. Boy, we’d love sharing our thoughts with them on potential character greetings. It probably wouldn’t result in much, but we’d like to share.

Brett and I, realizing we wouldn’t make our lunch reservations at Restaurant Marrakesh, stopped by the Liberty Tree Tavern to cancel them and then we staked out a place to watch Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee. Would you believe I’ve never been over to Tom Sawyer Island in all of my travels to WDW? This is about as close as I’ve gotten:

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

We were down on the river so we missed out on the “parade” part that led them over to the Liberty Belle. I really like that they’ve staked out a spot for Princess Tiana and her bunch in Liberty Square, seeing as she fits perfectly there. The music works in that area and the use of the Liberty Belle was such a clever idea.

At the time we were watching it, I didn’t realize the show was only temporary. It seems odd that they would put that much effort into creating something with such a short shelf life. It was a good show, mostly due to the movie having such a great musical score. They sang at least six of the songs including Down in New Orleans, Almost There, Dig a Little Deeper, When We’re Human, Friends on the Other Side, and Gonna Take You There. I also appreciate the life it brings to Liberty Square. I just don’t understand why they aren’t keeping it around. And I think I heard something about Tiana’s and Naveen’s meet and greet not sticking around either, which makes no sense to me. If that turns out to be true, they should at the very least include Tiana with the other princesses in Toontown.

Louis looked fabulous and of course seeing him made me wish he was out doing meet and greets. Why not!? I fear he’ll go the way of Bowler Hat Guy, Bolt, Remy and Emile now that the jubilee is over.

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

After the jubilee we got a move on to Tomorrowland to use our Space Mountain fastpasses from earlier in the morning. I really like the new signage when you exit the ride.

When we got into the arcade we saw these two. I thought they were really cute simply because they were close to scale:

Getting hungry and not sure where we wanted to eat, Brett and I suggested the Earl of Sandwich at DTD. Of course Brett and I had ulterior motives for making our way back to DTD. :lookaroun So we said goodbye to Tomorrowland and took off for the monorail and tram back to the car.

Up next... Downtown Disney and the Animal Kingdom.

HollyBelle · Jan 17, 2010

tiaragirl said:
Love the picture with Tiana.. every time I see pictures of *her* she's absolutely gorgeous (as she was in the film).

I'm also appreciating your outfits, just sayin'. I'm all about classy Disney looks (especially on MK day!).

I defnitely agree with you about Tiana... she was fully in character, with the accent and all. She was perfect and Naveen wasn't too bad himself.

Thanks, about the outfits. I'm sure you completely understand why I'm not a fan of matching t-shirts! :lol: Deciding what I'm going to wear when we go to Disney is always part of the fun for me!

tiaragirl · Jan 17, 2010

HollyBelle said:
I defnitely agree with you about Tiana... she was fully in character, with the accent and all. She was perfect and Naveen wasn't too bad himself.

Thanks, about the outfits. I'm sure you completely understand why I'm not a fan of matching t-shirts! :lol: Deciding what I'm going to wear when we go to Disney is always part of the fun for me!

Not going to lie, when I'm in really boring labs I make 'clothes' lists.. so much fun that we'll be on the Wonder and able to dress up!

Mind you, that's not until May.. can you tell I'm a bit excited? hahah. I'm said we won't get to see the Jubilee though, it looked like a really wonderful addition.

mouselvrmom · Jan 17, 2010

I'm digging all of your character pictures from today, Holly! And your crystal palace pictures are fabulous! I think you did a great job with your new camera.

Back a few trips when I was taking my new camera to the world, after the first night when I had downloaded my pictures, I felt really disappointed with them. I think I was expecting them all to be fabulous and I felt bad. But once I got home and got a chance to really study all of them I realized that they weren't so terrible, of course there were some really bad ones, but most of them were really ok. And, of course, practice makes perfect (or at least better)

disneygirl1 · Jan 18, 2010

HollyBelle said:
I hope he's still there too when you go back. I expect that he should be because he's doing meet and greets in the area where Koda and Kenai used to be and it is my knowledge that they have retired those two characters.

Oh I sure hope so Holly, that well totally make my little man's day!!! We missed Koda and Kenai when we were there is September... It was so hot the day we were at AK, hardly any characters were out!

And I LOVE the teardrop too!!! If it weren;t for you, I would have had NO idea that the place even existed!!! Big Al and Marie were out in September the day we went. Unfortunately, Heat must have gotten to the poor thing!

lovegrumpy · Jan 18, 2010

love all the pictures with the characters. My ds loved Princess and the frog. So hope they are all still around when we go in Aug.

HollyBelle · Jan 19, 2010

tiaragirl said:
Not going to lie, when I'm in really boring labs I make 'clothes' lists.. so much fun that we'll be on the Wonder and able to dress up!

Mind you, that's not until May.. can you tell I'm a bit excited? hahah. I'm said we won't get to see the Jubilee though, it looked like a really wonderful addition.

Oooh... the Wonder! How exciting. We booked the Dream for March 2011. I've never booked a vacation that far in advance so it's going to be hard waiting for it to get here. Is it your first cruise? It'll be our first Disney cruise and I'm so excited!

mouselvrmom said:
I'm digging all of your character pictures from today, Holly! And your crystal palace pictures are fabulous! I think you did a great job with your new camera.

Back a few trips when I was taking my new camera to the world, after the first night when I had downloaded my pictures, I felt really disappointed with them. I think I was expecting them all to be fabulous and I felt bad. But once I got home and got a chance to really study all of them I realized that they weren't so terrible, of course there were some really bad ones, but most of them were really ok. And, of course, practice makes perfect (or at least better)

Thanks, Jenn. I think I had the opposite reaction as you. When I downloaded and saw some of the pictures on a much larger scale I realized they were blurry, etc. I was able to salvage some in photoshop, and overall I'm pleased with what I came back with.

disneygirl1 said:
Oh I sure hope so Holly, that well totally make my little man's day!!! We missed Koda and Kenai when we were there is September... It was so hot the day we were at AK, hardly any characters were out!

And I LOVE the teardrop too!!! If it weren;t for you, I would have had NO idea that the place even existed!!! Big Al and Marie were out in September the day we went. Unfortunately, Heat must have gotten to the poor thing!

Yeah, I'm sure the characters have appreciated this cool weather for a change. I really don't know how they do it during the summer months. It'll be interesting to see where the new training area pops up once Fantasyland is complete.

lovegrumpy said:
love all the pictures with the characters. My ds loved Princess and the frog. So hope they are all still around when we go in Aug.

We certainly love those characters!! I was a big fan of the movie as well. And they fit so well in Liberty Square, I hope they're still there for you when August rolls around.

HollyBelle · Jan 19, 2010

It was around 1:30 when we got to the Earl of Sandwich and surprisingly enough, the place was crazy packed. I was really impressed with how quickly they moved the queue along; they really had a system going and it worked. I LOVE this place. When you factor in price/value, it’s hands down the best counter service at the World. Where else are you going to get a sandwich of that size/quality for only $6?!

After lunch, Brett and I took off for the Art of Disney… we had a purchase to make! Woohoo!!! Merry Christmas, Love!

When it was time to pay for our order the CM asked if we had a Disney Visa, because it was 10% off if we did. We don’t. So we asked if there were other discounts available and get this… AP holders get 20% off. I totally didn’t know this before and it’s probably going to get me in trouble in the future.

Of course there are restrictions on some things, like originals and limited editions for example. While we were there I asked the CM about two of my other favorite pieces, hoping to maybe get them at some point in the future. It’s the separate paintings of Donald and Daisy where he’s holding out a drooping flower and she has her back turned, as if to say “Hmmmmmppphhhh!”

Well, turns out they were a limited edition set and are no longer available. Bummer. The only one left is the original Daisy. I find it so sad that someone out there bought the original Donald, but didn’t get Daisy, too. She’s still on display at the Art of Disney. Here she is, yours for only $4,000.

Titled: “The Lady Will Have None of It”

HollyBelle · Jan 19, 2010

Kathy and I really wanted to watch the Jingle Jungle parade so Brett dropped Derek and Danny off at the resort and the three of us took off for the Animal Kingdom. We found a place to stand in Africa and hoped the rain would hold off until the parade was over. The Christmas overlay is good, but I prefer the original Jammin Jungle parade.

I love all the detail in the stockings hanging off of Goofy’s truck, I find Emile’s presence especially surprising though. The others make much more sense for the AK.

We considered hanging around and riding Everest again, but the sky kept getting darker and darker, so instead we headed back to the villa to relax a little bit before dinner.

HollyBelle · Jan 19, 2010

It was date night for Brett and I and we had 7 pm reservations for the Yachtsman Steakhouse. We’ve been to many of the signature dining establishments multiple times, and when we were deciding where to go for this trip we realized there are some signature restaurants we have yet to try. The Yachtsman Steakhouse just so happened to be one of them. And we figured, since we were staying at the Beach Club this would be the perfect time to try it.

We arrived fifteen minutes early and were seated within 5-10 minutes of checking in. Mmm… dinner:

The kitchen reminded me of Narcoosee’s because it’s practically in the lobby. They were quietly expediting dishes as we walked through.

We were seated at a great two top in the first of two dining rooms. The second dining room was rather empty throughout most of our meal:

At this point, I can’t remember which varietal either of us ordered, but we decided to forego a bottle so that we could pair our wine with the entrées we chose. I always appreciate restaurants that serve red wine in a massive glass. I hate drinking it out of the little wine glasses that are usually found on the table when you get there. They really do a disservice to reds because they can’t possibly release the bouquet to its fullest.

Also pictured is the basket of bread brought out to us. There were two types, a typical hard French roll and a really delicious pull-apart onion roll that went really well with the soft salted butter. For dinner I ordered a med-rare filet with a red wine sauce and mashed potatoes. It was cooked perfectly and the red wine sauce suited it well. I wasn’t too crazy about the mashed potatoes though. They were just that… red skin mashed potatoes without much added flavor. I wish I had switched them out for one of the other sides when the server explained it as an option; I didn’t though because I don’t like to make substitutions on dishes unless I really don’t like something. I guess that is my one complaint here... the sides were not designed to pair specifically with the meat, they were pretty much interchangeable. And I much prefer when the side/entree are made better with the presence of the other.

Brett ordered the New York Strip with peppercorn brandy sauce and potato gratin. He really liked it, especially the peppercorn sauce, but in the end he wishes he would have went with another cut of beef, as strip isn’t one of his favorites. I can vouch for the gratin… it was delicious. And I think I ate most of it off his plate. Unlike my potatoes, it didn’t taste like something off a buffet.

Overall, we really enjoyed the Yachtsman but it’s nowhere near the top of our signature list. It didn’t bring anything special or any new flavors to the table; whereas Jiko, Flying Fish and California Grill do every time.

HollyBelle · Jan 19, 2010

We gave Brett’s parents a call when we were finished with dinner. They had spent part of the evening at Epcot and partook in the new Tequila Bar in Mexico. Apparently, Danny and Derek had tried the margarita flight and both said the margaritas weren’t all too tasty. I think they wished they would have just done a tequila flight instead. With no EMH that night, most of the parks were closing or near to it so we decided to meet back up at the room and go play mini golf.

We did this last Christmas and had a blast. So this year we decided upon Fantasia Gardens. I’m really wishing we would have gone back to Winter Summerland because the courses over there are simply more fun. Fantasia Gardens was just a bit bland in comparison. The pictures I took weren’t very exciting and due to my not fully understanding my camera, many of them came out blurry, but here are a few because a post isn't complete without pictures:

After an overly competitive game of mini golf we made our way back to the villas. The winner was Brett! Danny, Derek and I tied for second and Kathy finished last. Last year Sandy Claus was responsible for her downfall. This year Bacchus was the one who threw her off her game.

And in the BCV elevator series we have Derek hiding as Brett gloats over his win:

Up next: DHS and the DVC Member Mixer!

ClemsonTigger · Jan 19, 2010

I should never read your updates before lunch.... :slurp:

Understand your point about the sides at Yachtsman...I've always taken it like a Ruth Chris Steakhouse where basically you are ordering the meat, and sides are a la carte. We would usually go with creamed spinach, mac and cheese and something else, shared by the table. Other favorites there include the lobster bisque and my DW is always game for an artisan cheese selection.

Jessie&Buzz · Jan 19, 2010

We loved Yatchsman Steakhouse. I can't wait to go back some day without the kids although they both were very well behaved. In fact we let our son run on the pathway back to Epcot to burn off the energy he saved up while he sat so still during dinner. My daughter and I had the filet and thought it was heavenly. I can't remember what steak my husband got but he loved it. Our son who is sometimes picky had the grilled chicken off the kids menu. He ate every bite of it so I know it was good.

Thanks for sharing your report so far. I've enjoyed reading it. I love the mirror pics. That's a great idea.

Tiggerish · Jan 20, 2010

HollyBelle said:
I love Brett for millions of reasons; his humoring me and indulging my whims is certainly one of them:

When you find one of those, you hang on!! (I've got one, too

)

I'm totally loving all your pictures, and the restaurant reviews--we, too, find dining a very important part of a Disney vacation, and I also totally agree with what you said about Kouzzina/Spoodles and the "flattening out" of menus property-wide.

Did not know about that 20% AP discount at Art of Disney; that could get us in trouble next time.

Great report, and I'll be looking forward to seeing the photoshop pages from the trip!! :lol::wave::sohappy:

HollyBelle · Jan 20, 2010

ClemsonTigger said:
I should never read your updates before lunch.... :slurp:

Understand your point about the sides at Yachtsman...I've always taken it like a Ruth Chris Steakhouse where basically you are ordering the meat, and sides are a la carte. We would usually go with creamed spinach, mac and cheese and something else, shared by the table. Other favorites there include the lobster bisque and my DW is always game for an artisan cheese selection.

I think that's a really good comparison. And a good idea for sharing sides; if we had done that, I wouldn't have expected them to compliment the steak quite as much. The steak was certainly delicious but I prefer dishes where the side enhances the meat and vice versa. The filet with mac and cheese at Jiko comes to mind right away... the combination of red wine reduction and mac and cheese is perfect.

Jessie&Buzz said:
We loved Yatchsman Steakhouse. I can't wait to go back some day without the kids although they both were very well behaved. In fact we let our son run on the pathway back to Epcot to burn off the energy he saved up while he sat so still during dinner. My daughter and I had the filet and thought it was heavenly. I can't remember what steak my husband got but he loved it. Our son who is sometimes picky had the grilled chicken off the kids menu. He ate every bite of it so I know it was good.

Thanks for sharing your report so far. I've enjoyed reading it. I love the mirror pics. That's a great idea.

Thanks, Jessie&Buzz! I really enjoy writing it so I appreciate the comments. The mirror pictures were a lot of fun.

The Yachtsman was certainly good and I'm really glad we ate there, it just doesn't rank as high for me as some of the other signature experiences. Good luck snagging a date night on a future trip, though!!

Tiggerish said:
When you find one of those, you hang on!! (I've got one, too )

I'm totally loving all your pictures, and the restaurant reviews--we, too, find dining a very important part of a Disney vacation, and I also totally agree with what you said about Kouzzina/Spoodles and the "flattening out" of menus property-wide.

Did not know about that 20% AP discount at Art of Disney; that could get us in trouble next time.

Great report, and I'll be looking forward to seeing the photoshop pages from the trip!! :lol::wave::sohappy:

Thanks, Siobhan.

I plan on keeping him!

And I think the way you described the menus as being "flattened out" is spot on. It's disappointing for the food lovers amongst us.

Hopefully I'll be posting more pages over in the scrapbook forums soon enough, although I don't think they'll be from this trip... I'm about finished with my marathon book from a year ago.

I'm a bit behind. :lol:

Celebrating Christmas at the Cape: A December 2009 Trip Report

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