Trip Report COMPLETED- Chickie RUNS Wonderland...and goes MAD!!!

Swissmiss · Jan 16, 2020

We did the dessert party the week before you because we knew it would be very crowded (they kept making an announcement that people needed to find a location other than the hub which was at capacity) and we were pleased that for the most part people in the garden stayed seated, so we were able to have a good enough view without standing (and now that I think about it: since I am not tall, probably saw as much if not more of the lower castle than I would have in a standing crowd)

HouCuseChickie · Jan 16, 2020

MickeyCB said:
Your pictures of the MK fireworks are so incredibly beautiful!!!

Thank you!!!

HouCuseChickie · Jan 16, 2020

Swissmiss said:
We did the dessert party the week before you because we knew it would be very crowded (they kept making an announcement that people needed to find a location other than the hub which was at capacity) and we were pleased that for the most part people in the garden stayed seated, so we were able to have a good enough view without standing (and now that I think about it: since I am not tall, probably saw as much if not more of the lower castle than I would have in a standing crowd)

That sounds like our 2017 trip. It was the week leading into Christmas, so crowds were building. We chose to spend time with family and ditched our HEA plans, but they had these ongoing announcements about the % to which the hub was filled. I know at some point, they announced it was at 100% capacity and people would need to find other places to watch. I was really hoping people would sit in the garden last week, but eventually everyone around us was standing, so I stood too. I did wonder if there were any projection details I was missing through the standing crowd. Oh well...at least we weren't having to stake out a spot in the masses and deal with all of that.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 16, 2020

Oh, before I get started on the next day...I totally forgot that during HEA, we had a proposal happen right next to us. You hear about them all the time, but I've never one seen one...until now. He did it in the middle of the show, so I suspect it was a section that had meaning to them both. The photopass photographer also came over for pictures. I was happy for them, got a little teary eyed...and a little jealous! I mean, I'd like a proposal in front of WDW fireworks too! Sure, I'm married, but he can always ask again...right? I like jewelry...I wouldn't be opposed to a second ring. LOL

January 8th

We're finally going to get to experience some runDisney stuff...and I was kind of nervous. I mean, would I totally mess things up at the expo? Would I see one of the vloggers or podcasters I follow and make a fool out of myself? Probably not, but it was new to me, so I worried.

Oh well, I was hoping to sleep in a bit, but I ended up waking up right around the time that the sun was rising.

I tried to go back to sleep, but with that eastern exposure, light kept getting into the room. So, I guess I was up! We didn't have to be anywhere until 11:30am and it was still early, so I hit the balcony for a while to see what kinds of animals we had out there.

I also took a few videos...

I love how the giraffes are synchronized in so many of their movements in that second video.

My friend was up as well, so we decided to head out and explore AKL. This was her first time here, so it's kind of a must to go check out all of the details. Last time we stayed here, I totally missed the flamingos. I was at the hot tub right next to them, but somehow I still missed the. Well, I got to see them this time!

HouCuseChickie · Jan 16, 2020

I also tried to take video, but it appears that the audio cut out. This used to happen periodically with my old iPhone as well.

It's too bad you can't hear them. I mean, I'm sure many of you have heard the flamingos, but it just cracked me up to hear all of that squawking.

Oh well, time to walk around a bit more...

I think we'd actually gone outside near the Mara and the pool, so I hadn't seen if the decor was still up, but you can see...we've still got Christmas!

And more Jambo wandering...

We decided to head outside.

Not sure why, but I wanted to climb this thing...so we did. We couldn't get inside when we got to the top. I suspect it's because 5th floor may be reserved for club level guests, but as I was walking away, a CM let us in. So, I got some 5th floor photos.

I think this is 4th floor, so I guess this is when we went down a level.

We still had some time until our lunch reservation, but my friend had also never been to AKL in any capacity, so we decided to walk over to Kidani so she could check that out as well.

Always have loved the lights in here...

HouCuseChickie · Jan 16, 2020

We headed downstairs after this because I needed to use the restroom, but I also wanted to relax outside for a bit. I don't know what it is, but I just love the look of the restroom down there. I think my friend thought I was crazy for being so into this bathroom. And no...this wasn't the start of my madness LOL! I think I've always brought up loving this bathroom.

After heading out of the bathroom, I was checking out the adjacent windows and noticed that the tortoises were gone! I'm not sure for how long, but I always liked watching them from the little waiting benches in those areas. Unless they were temporarily removed for maintenance? There were some guys touching up the facade in this area and I'm sure it's too disruptive to have the animals in there while this is going on.

Oh well, we headed out and there were plenty of animals to be seen. I think I prefer Kidani's viewing area since you are ground level and it feels more open.

Love these lights too!!! Even though I take a pic every visit...I still had to photograph it.

It was a little windy and a bit chilly, but it was just so nice to sit and relax. Future me should have done more of this!

We made a quick pop into Kidani's store just to see if there was anything fun. I thought these were cool, but I'm just not all that into pins.

I didn't take any pictures (shocking), but I spent much of the rest of my free time looking at all of the pieces on exhibit. Then it was time to head down to check in for lunch...

We had an 11:30, so I thought we'd have a decent chance of a window table, but there's only one 2-top at the window and we were the second party to check in. Party #1 was also a 2-top, so we sat off to the side. We could still see out, but obviously, it's not the same. I guess I could have asked, but I already got AKL magic with our room and we could see animals all the time. So I think we were both good. Oh...and when did they stop doing the drums before the first seating? I don't think we've been to Sanaa since 2016, but we always had those drums to start service at the beginning of lunch or dinner. Oh well.

Some of you know I love lights...Disney lights...so I had to capture these after we were seated.

The ceiling, as a whole, is pretty.

I also love when they add holiday decor inside of the restaurants. Our first holiday trip wasn't until Dec 2010, but back then, very few of the restaurants we visited had anything holiday.

So, before I get into my food pictures, I want to address one of the small negative parts of this trip. No, this wasn't like the 2017 trip where I had a ton of gripes, but I do believe in sharing an honest account of things as well. So, we went in hungry, but also had plans of ordering the bread service. Anyone who has had it knows it's a lot of food. So, we decided to split the bread service and an entree. Our server's entire demeanor changed as soon as we said share and split. I've shared at WDW before...I've just had an appetizer or dessert before...and I've never felt uncomfortable, until now. Her tone changed, conversation suddenly was short, and just little details like water refills and bringing an extra plate for sharing when the entree came out were missed and then seemed like a bother when done. When we got our extra plate (that was brought to us by someone else), she even popped in and said something...with a tone....that went like "Ya know, you can use that plate under the bowls as an extra plate...just so ya know." Of course, the bowls were kind of warm, so moving them around had to wait for some cooling. The entree we split was the most expensive option on the menu and the bread service is the most expensive starter. It worked out to about $23 a head before taxes. This was the same price as the second most expensive entree and more than the rest of the entrees. It's also more than several of the non-bread service appetizer combos I could have done. I get that it's a tipped position and it was pretty dead in there, but I've come to expect more from this spot. I've gone in and just ordered the bread service before for me and never had any odd treatment like this in the past, so I certainly wasn't expecting it. The food didn't disappoint, but we could have been treated a little bit better.

So, here's the food...including their house made gluten free naan.

Her breads look sooooooooooooo much better! Mine weren't bad, but nothing like the real thing.

Here's our entree that we shared and that one plate.

We finished up our food and it was time to move on. Obviously, a bit bothered about the server, but nothing to ruin my meal or day. We had someplace we had to be and I think we'd given the personal shopper crowds plenty of time to die down. I had seen a person earlier with a runDisney clipboard, but hadn't seen the sandwich board out yet directing runners with info. I couldn't find that person I saw earlier, so I went to bell services and they told me where to go. The girl did eventually come back and it wasn't long before we had our bus.

I'll admit, I was a mix of nerves and excitement. It's not like I was doing any running this day, but this was new...Disney new. It was a new that went beyond a new restaurant, attraction, bookable experience, etc. I was going to something big that was part of something bigger, that was completely foreign to me outside of the online world until now. I was wondering what I'd see and even who I'd see? Would I pop into any runners from my online groups? Would I see any of the vloggers or podcasters I'd been following? Would I make a fool of myself if I did? I know I'm repeating myself a bit from the beginning of this entry, but it kept playing over in my mind too.

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Coming up...Expo time!

ELeigh · Jan 16, 2020

All of your AKL pictures have me so excited to stay there. I am sorry about your service at Sanaa, my sister and I split bread service and one of the cheapest entrees about a year ago and didn’t have any issues. The bread service is a must there and it’s so filling that I imagine people split meals all of the time.

Swissmiss · Jan 16, 2020

Hmm. I wonder if you had the same server we had the week before. We were a party of 4. My sister and I immediately said we were going to split the bread service but also order appetizers, and my BIL ordered an entree, my 14 asked to see the kids menu, and ended up with a couple of kids appetizers. My sister and I ordered appetizers as well, but by then the woman had “turned off” and only heard half of what was ordered. At the end, her attitude led us to understand that she didn’t want to deal with splitting our bill, so I quickly said I’d pay for it and we’d work it out between us. It is sooooo common to split bills here (either by dividing equally or each person paying for what they consumed), that I think I was momentarily taken aback. And over here splitting the bill usually means each person paying with their own credit card. (But the fact that the credit card machine and a money belt comes directly to the table does facilitate things).

MickeyCB · Jan 16, 2020

HouCuseChickie said:
Our server's entire demeanor changed as soon as we said share and split. I've shared at WDW before...I've just had an appetizer or dessert before...and I've never felt uncomfortable, until now. Her tone changed, conversation suddenly was short, and just little details like water refills and bringing an extra plate for sharing when the entree came out were missed and then seemed like a bother when done. When we got our extra plate (that was brought to us by someone else), she even popped in and said something...with a tone....that went like "Ya know, you can use that plate under the bowls as an extra plate...just so ya know." Of course, the bowls were kind of warm, so moving them around had to wait for some cooling. The entree we split was the most expensive option on the menu and the bread service is the most expensive starter. It worked out to about $23 a head before taxes. This was the same price as the second most expensive entree and more than the rest of the entrees. It's also more than several of the non-bread service appetizer combos I could have done. I get that it's a tipped position and it was pretty dead in there, but I've come to expect more from this spot.

I'm of the opinion you should in no way have to explain yourself. She can just stuff it! It's not like you went in there and ordered a glass of water!

And, what she has not figured out is most customers, if treated graciously would still give a decent/to better tip.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 17, 2020

ELeigh said:
All of your AKL pictures have me so excited to stay there. I am sorry about your service at Sanaa, my sister and I split bread service and one of the cheapest entrees about a year ago and didn’t have any issues. The bread service is a must there and it’s so filling that I imagine people split meals all of the time.

It's a beautiful place to stay. Out of all of the WDW resorts, I think it's the one that could stand alone in the real world and still be wildly successful. I know I've ordered the bread service as my only food at least once or twice and I've never had an issue and I recall sharing some stuff with my mom on my last visit, so I was a bit surprised by the sharing reaction.

Swissmiss said:
Hmm. I wonder if you had the same server we had the week before. We were a party of 4. My sister and I immediately said we were going to split the bread service but also order appetizers, and my BIL ordered an entree, my 14 asked to see the kids menu, and ended up with a couple of kids appetizers. My sister and I ordered appetizers as well, but by then the woman had “turned off” and only heard half of what was ordered. At the end, her attitude led us to understand that she didn’t want to deal with splitting our bill, so I quickly said I’d pay for it and we’d work it out between us. It is sooooo common to split bills here (either by dividing equally or each person paying for what they consumed), that I think I was momentarily taken aback. And over here splitting the bill usually means each person paying with their own credit card. (But the fact that the credit card machine and a money belt comes directly to the table does facilitate things).

With our trips being so close, it seems quite possible that we had the same server. She didn't seem too excited to split our bill either, but it was a pretty simple 50/50 that we requested and it was just two of us, so I didn't feel like we were asking her to do anything outlandish. Turned off sounds like a really good way to describe this. She wasn't over the top bothered with us, but something wasn't right either. It wasn't so bad that it ruined our meal, but it was there. Oh well...at least the food and scenery was good.

MickeyCB said:
I'm of the opinion you should in no way have to explain yourself. She can just stuff it! It's not like you went in there and ordered a glass of water! And, what she has not figured out is most customers, if treated graciously would still give a decent/to better tip.

Funny that you mention gratuity...both my friend and I worked in restaurants back in our younger days. So, we're both pretty generous when it comes to tipping and are also both well aware of what's OK and not OK. This woman wasn't "call out the manager" rude to either one of us...because that really would have soured the meal, but she certainly wasn't pleased. Thankfully, good scenery and great food still made this a good meal for us.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 17, 2020

As we arrived at the Expo, I had flashbacks to the 2011 road trip where we surprised our kids. I think this was the last time I had seen any of this area (from a different vantage point). Still, here we are!!!

On our way up, we passed all kinds of people and I was pretty sure I saw one of the girls from one of the podcasts/YouTube channels I follow. Aside from liking or commenting on a few of my Facebook posts here and there, she doesn't exactly know me, and she also wasn't right next to me...so I didn't want to go running over and be like "HEY!!!" Still, it was one of those moments where I had that "this is really happening" feeling. I also saw a girl who is a member in that group along the way who is very recognizable because of her hair, but I really thought she'd think I was crazy if I approached her. Still...making this very real.

So, we went the first place everyone goes...

Having never done this before, we initially entered the door for pre-purchased items in error. There was a huge line to meet Mickey in there, but I wasn't quite up for it. I did however get passed by Goofy. It's like I turned around and there he was! I remember blurting out his name and I got a quick high 5. So that was fun.

So, we made our way down the hall to the area for everyone else wanting to buy stuff...

And then we entered this room...and those yellow lines are supposed to function like the standard switch backs you find for rides. People were very well behaved while we were here, but supposedly it was chaos in the morning hours.

I thought about going early for all of that chaos, but there was no Dooney bag for this one, which is the first time I remember that happening, and the other hot items...like pins...just aren't my thing. Speaking of Dooney bags, the woman behind us in line had the one from a few years ago and I was having serious bag envy. Oh well.

The wait wasn't too bad and we were allowed in...

I really wasn't planning on buying anything, but I did come out with a few things...which I'll share when I get to the end of the day, because I had more stuff to get as well as at least one more thing to bring home that I'd buy. Oh, we also got into the wrong line at first, but we quickly discovered our error and got into the right line. It looked long, but didn't take too long. I also had a big relief. The night before, at WL, I had tried to buy a fuel rod since I left my charger back at the room and was having to use my friend's (not used to draining my phone from picture taking), but the machine wouldn't take my card. Thankfully, everything was fine with me paying for my run merch with the card and I had no issues from that point on. I mean, I was getting the 10% off with my rewards card, and while I had a decent amount of rewards dollars, it wouldn't last all trip. So, I really wanted the physical card to work. Whew!

After that, we made our way to the next huge building for bib pickup. I think this may be where my madness started to set in. As you can see in the pic of me below, there are a series of numbers on each booth. I didn't realize those were ranges in bib numbers. So, I just walked up to the very first one and they looked at me like I was nuts...like come on lady, can't you read your bib number? I'm sure it happens all of the time.

I remembered to print our race waivers with our bib numbers at home (although, we forgot to sign them until we were there), so at least that's one thing we didn't have to do. Still, since I was running three races that weren't under a challenge, I had to hit three separate booths for bibs and such. After that, it was off to get our shirts and gear bags...along with see the part of the expo with all of the vendors.

I also don't know why I saved it, but I accidentally took the most random short video of us walking there...

In any event, this is where we were headed...

We went in the wrong door at first. We went in the out and near some restaurant. Oh well. We found our way. I was also able to see some of the softball fields from this vantage point and secretly hoping we'd one day come here to do one of our travel tournaments. We're heading to FL, but not Orlando. Booooo.

And here it is...tons of places to get stuff...

I didn't take a ton of pics, but it was kind of neat looking around. Plus, we got our shirts and our gear bags. A few little funny stories in here as well. I was in my Oofos and looking at all of the Oofos, when I mentioned to my friend how much they help with recovery. She's really not sold on all of this running stuff, probably because she's more sane than me, but when I started singing the praises even louder with the nearby salesman, she thought I was trying to convince her to buy a pair. We also made a pass by the Sparkle Athletics booth before heading out because she'd debated about a skirt for her costume. Had I not put on my caterpillar feet to the blue skirt for my 10k costume, she could have borrowed mine. Oh well, she passed on the skirt.

I took a look at the medals before we headed out...

As much as I love Oswald, I am still not a fan of the 10k medal. Some people have even reported his yellow outline peeled off. Oh well, time to head out...

When we were dropped off, we got a good look at all of the bus stops for the various destinations and Disney Springs was just a couple over from AK, so we knew exactly where to go. Next stop...DISNEY SPRINGS!

I knew the parks would be fully decorated, but it hadn't occurred to me that Disney Springs would be as well. As we entered, my eye caught the first signs of holiday decor.

And there's the tree!

Before hitting this up...

We had to check out all of the cool cakes...

HouCuseChickie · Jan 17, 2020

Yes, there's a part of me that really wanted to just say to heck with it and order something. Oh well, on to WOD. I can't remember the last time I was in here, but they totally changed it up since my last visit. It's no longer a maze! I did see a raincoat and matching umbrella I really liked, but I skipped it...although, I'm still thinking about it.

We waved good bye...

And it was on to the Co Op. This is where I really thought I'd cave and buy a Dooney, but the weekender in Sketch is the only truly big bag they have and I'm still not a huge fan of Sketch. The did have a really big sketch tote with the yellow leather accents that did have some appeal, but not big enough to really call it a carry on...and as much as I love yellow, it's still sketch.

My friend had asked about sitting and resting our feet for a bit. Mine were still pretty good because everything I brought to wear was either running shoes, Oofos, or my white Pumas, which still have some decent cushion, but I knew I'd also benefit from sitting. She hadn't really gotten to explore much in the way of Disney resorts, so I suggested we take a boat to POR or POFQ. When the first boat arrived, they asked where we were heading...I said either one! So, we got on a boat to POFQ.

We had a really funny captain who was pretending to race some of the other boats.

All in all, it's just a nice and peaceful ride.

We arrived to see a ton of rooms with towel Mickeys in the windows.

And look, they're still decked out for Christmas!!!

Had to take a few gator pics...

Now, I have heard about the POFQ beignets, but I've never had them...not even when we stayed at POR in 2016. I also heard that they made gluten free beignets...so since I was already here...

I cannot fairly judge these. First off, as a person who hasn't had a donut or beignet since my dietary changes, they seemed pretty darn amazing. Still, my brain does remember beignets at places like Cafe Du Monde and Cafe Beignet, so it's hard to really judge. I will say this, the chef brought them out and told me he gave me four instead of three, because one of them came out a little small for his liking. Gotta love that.

So, we walked around a bit more...

HouCuseChickie · Jan 17, 2020

It was around this time that my friend wanted to look in the shop. I took a quick pass thru but decided I needed to be with my beignets. I was glad I was in white shorts, because MOST of the powdered sugar I was showered in was well concealed with those. Of course, my shoes, purse and cardigan sleeves got a nice dusting. Oh, and learn from me...wait for them to cool a little. I just couldn't help myself!

We still had lots of time to burn, so we decided to walk over to POR. I was kind of jealous because I saw all of these people running along the way. I was still carrying my gear bag...with the ridiculously long string...so I guess runners noticed and we got the traditional runner's wave with each pass.

Yup...POR still in Christmas mode as well.

My friend went in to shop and while I took a quick look, I decided sitting was a good idea.

It's funny, I have some really fond memories of staying at POR, but I just can't shake the beds we had in our group's rooms. My parents don't feel this has improved, so they've been sticking to CBR for most of their trips.

We decided to head back to Disney Springs. I had a thought about my bag shopping and some other places I wanted to stop before heading to dinner. There was a boat that looked like it was getting ready to go and we were very thankful that they waited for us.

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Coming up...more shopping in DS, dinner, and first race prep.

Piglet_the_brave · Jan 17, 2020

Following along. Interested to read your thoughts about the races.

The expo looks quite calm by the time you got there. We went in the morning and it was packed.

Swissmiss · Jan 17, 2020

I can’t speak for all of POR because my last trip was our first time staying there, but the beds in the Royal Room were VERY comfortable! And I know what you mean about the desire to run there; in the end I only did the Sunday morning Beignet Fun Run but I do wish I had made more time to run after that day...

HouCuseChickie · Jan 18, 2020

Piglet_the_brave said:
Following along. Interested to read your thoughts about the races.

The expo looks quite calm by the time you got there. We went in the morning and it was packed.

It's funny...those thoughts keep changing. Nothing really bad, but I get all in my head and keep going back and forth about the experiences.

I saw a number of Facebook and Instagram posts from the morning and it looked like insanity. I would have braved it in the morning if there was something I just had to have, but I decided a more quiet morning was what I really needed.

Swissmiss said:
I can’t speak for all of POR because my last trip was our first time staying there, but the beds in the Royal Room were VERY comfortable! And I know what you mean about the desire to run there; in the end I only did the Sunday morning Beignet Fun Run but I do wish I had made more time to run after that day...

It's possible that the Royal Rooms have newer beds or we could have had poor luck with the cluster of rooms we had on our trip. We had several rooms in the Magnolia section and all were squeaky and you could feel the springs. Oh well...it's a pretty resort area and I've seen some with off days go out of their way to run there. Awesome that you got to do the Beignet run. I see that come up quite a bit in my Facebook groups.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 18, 2020

The sun was starting to set as we got back to DS.

I thought it would be in our best interest to use a boat to get us closer to our next stop. So we did just that. I think this may have also been my first time seeing one of the amphicars in the water. Nobody else around us knew what they were, so I gave a brief explanation.

Funny how it still looks like middle of the day in this shot...

...but in the very next one, you'd think the sun is almost completely down. There really wasn't that much time between pictures.

We got out, at the Landing... I believe, and started walking.

I will admit, I was starting to get pretty chilly, but we pushed through. We hit up one shop that had lots of Dooneys, but again, nothing I liked. My real goal was to get to Vera Bradley. I figured a big duffel...if they had any I liked...would be ideal for a new carryon bag souvenier for me. Plus, it wouldn't break the bank as much as the Dooney. I will share it in a bit, but the mission was a success.

Next stop, my friend is obsessed with all things Ireland and is trying to get there with her husband, so we had to pop into that shop that feeds into Raglan Road.

Now, not that I really needed it, but I wanted to grab some sweet stuff at Erin McKenna's. I figured, I could buy a number of things and have sweet treats back at the room for the rest of the trip.

I wound up leaving with an eclair, a coconut mounds, a thin mint, and pineapple upside down cake. I ate the mounds right away...not like I really needed it. It was pretty good.

Now, if you followed my PTR, you might recall that I had two ADRs for tonight. The first was Wine Bar George and the second was Jaleo. The plan was to have small bites at both, but the day before, I decided to cut Jaleo. It was the later reservation, it was the more formal spot and I just really didn't think we needed it. In fact, we wound up checking in to Wine Bar George about 45 minutes early because we were tired and just ready to wind down the day.

The bar downstairs had a crowd, but there was no sign of people waiting either. So, we were hoping they'd work us in early...which they did. We were led upstairs and took a seat.

I can't remember the name of our server, but he was so informative and attentive...and kind of funny too.

My friend started with meatballs over polenta. She said the meatballs were good, but that the polenta was the real rock star of this dish.

And I started with the charcuterie...which was really good, but I probably should have stuck to something with less sodium. I mean, it's just the nature of cured meats.

The picture is awful, but this was my friend's salad!

I had ordered octopus for my next dish, but our server came back to inform me that the chef had some concerns about cross contamination. So, I ordered the hummus and they doubled up my cucumber slices to make up for the naan I couldn't have. Someone also didn't get the memo about the octopus, because it was brought out to me. Oh well, here's my hummus.

My friend also ordered the flaming saganaki. As a former cheese person, I was ridiculously jealous.

Now, you must be wondering what kind of drinking we were doing...since we were at Wine Bar George. I don't really drink wine, but they had something even I could enjoy. They offer a Dole Whip made with moscato and vodka. So, as our server kindly pointed out, I am a wine drinker after all! Ha. I didn't take any pictures of it, but I think you can see some of it in the wine video I'm going to post below. This also satisfied my friend's request for a Dole Whip. She had one as well before getting her wine flight below.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 18, 2020

We were tired and it was time to go, so we headed to the bus area.

This would be my one and only bus gripe of the trip. My friend would have another, but this was the only one to impact me. We waited for close to 45 minutes for a bus and it involved other guests hailing down bus drivers to call over someone to get us a bus. Now, I remember a time when they'd say buses run every 15 minutes and I recall this being quoted as 15-30 for us this trip. I also remember a time when buses for DTD in the pre DS days were horribly unreliable. All I know is we waited and waited...watched Ft. Wilderness get 3 buses, Riviera get 3 buses, and we still got none. We got a bus shortly after a CM on the ground got involved. And looked, it's Cinderella's carriage, getting ready to take us back to AKL.

We got back to AKL, made the hike back to our room and it was time to check out all of our loot for the day.

Now, this isn't what I bought, but it's what they put it in. It's a pretty sturdy tote, so I think this will have to be used for softball days or something like that.

Now this is what I bought. It's folded up a bit, but it's the big duffel. There were two other Disney patterns that had more blues that I liked a bit better, but this one had Donald. I went through about 10 bags to find one with good Donald placement...and I'm really happy with it.

And these are the shirts they gave us for the three races I was in. I kind of made a fool of myself when we picked them up. Just like the bib blunder, twice I got into the line for the wrong size. Again...it happens.

Bibs! Someone mentioned that the bibs were excessively large this year.

Bought a magnet! It's on my car right now, but I've been advised to move it inside. One guy shared a picture of his washer or dryer with all of his Disney magnets he doesn't want stolen. It's a thought!

And then these are the tops I bought.

And one last thing before bed...flatish Sandy...

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Coming up ... The beginning of the madness (aka 5K day), where sleep deprivation, running excitement and theme parks make us (and by us, I mean me) make stupid choices.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 19, 2020

So, as you might gather, a person running a race...regardless of the distance...could use some sleep. Sadly, this person didn't get much of that. I always suffer from a bit of race anxiety, but I'm also a night owl, my body was on central time, and I'm pretty noise sensitive. My husband snores so badly, that I normally sleep in our guest room at home, so having another person in the room with me made it hard for me to sleep as well. It's just an estimate, because I don't know the exact time I finally fell asleep, but I'd say I got between 2-2.5 hours of sleep. Not good. I recall my friend offering me something she takes, but 1. nothing new on race day 2. nothing that might make you groggy on race day.

Next not good... I botched the bus schedule. I had it somewhere up in the room, but somehow, I got 2:30am in my head. Yup...this is the start of me doing really stupid things from all of the madness, so I had our alarm go off around 1:45am and we were downstairs around 2:30 am. I went outside to where I assumed they'd be doing pickup and there was nothing. I tried scanning the QR code on the rD sandwich board and nothing. The morning of the 5k was also pretty chilly (to us), so it wasn't a sit outside and wait sort of thing either. So, I went inside to find a CM. The one at the front desk checked her records and the bus start time was 3:30! Ugh...so I missed out on an hour of sleep. I went out to get my friend, when the CM ran me down outside to find a paper copy of the times guide for me to hold on to. She did not have to do that, so that was super sweet of her. So we went inside and tried to rest a bit in the warmth. It was upper 40s and we were in run gear...and other people we'd later see were bundled too...so no shame with that. Needless to say, I was bothered with myself though for the time thing.

At least we had some cool moon stuff going on in the windows...

It was just us for a while, but as we got closer to 3:30, people started appearing. The first was a girl meeting a guy for a ride that she'd only met online. We joked a bit about what could go wrong, but it was just funny to have someone's first few things they say to you be like "have you seen a guy dressed as Nick Wilde?" He showed up a few minutes later and he was actually was a really good Nick too! We'd meet a few other people who were pros with all of this...one with cool Buzz wings...who helped get the excitement back into my system. And eventually, we all headed out to grab the bus. I've heard mixed stories about buses, but this was a breeze. I've since seen videos from Pop with massive lines and another from CBR where they were more behind than expected because the bus went all around the resort due to size (vs one central location). Oh well...we were on the bus.

See...much more excited!

It wasn't long before we arrived and were hopping off of the bus. I was in a fog, but this reminded me of where I was and what we were going to do.

I also didn't think about bag check if you weren't carrying a standard gear bag (didn't need it). But yea, even small running belts get checked. I'm fine with it, but in my lack of sleep and all, I didn't initially consider this. They were at least super fast.

Now, I'm going to tell you right now that I HATE and I mean HATE the vast majority of my race pictures. It's nobody's fault but my own. All of my run clothes and costumes still fit, but I can see how much holiday eating and stress eating has impacted my waistline. Holiday eating wasn't as bad as it used to be, but things have been absolutely horrific at work and the stress has been taking its toll. The running has helped keep me sane. Since I've gotten home, I'm back to eating better and can see some of the weight starting to come off. It is what it is.

So, we stopped for a picture. This wasn't a Photopass spot, but we were in a cycle of handing off phones to the next person so we could all grab photos.

After that, we started walking towards the stage.

I had a couple of mylars in my belt, but wasn't cold enough to break them out. I also thought there might be heat in a crowd, so we got in a line to meet Dopey. No, neither one of us was doing Dopey, but I didn't realize Pluto and Mickey were on the other side and I'm not a big fan of Minnie. Who knows...maybe Dopey would give me a push to think about bigger challenges.

It was also kind of fun seeing all of the people having fun over by the stage.

We finally got to Dopey and they took pics on both our phones and photopass cameras.

I think we only got one photopass pic out of this one, but that's fine...race time would totally make up for it. In fact, even if I didn't love my pictures, I can't say enough about how many pictures you get from your races. It totally justified the purchase of Memory Maker.

We waited for a while for Dopey...to the point where they were talking about shutting down the lines soon to get everyone to the corrals. So, we headed straight to the corrals as soon as we finished up.

I'm not sure how it all happened, but I was in corral C...the last corral, and my friend was in corral A. Neither one of us put in times for the 5k, so I'm not sure how any of this worked. In fact, all through this process, people talked about places to put in estimated times for all races and I NEVER saw that when I logged in to the runDisney site. The only thing I ever saw was a place to put in official proof of time for the half and a drop down where you could say you thought you'd run it in under 2:45. Oh well...I was in C...as was my finger.

HouCuseChickie · Jan 19, 2020

My friend could have dropped back to my corral, since you are always permitted to drop back, but I know she was nervous and while we hadn't totally discussed it before the trip, I was pretty sure we were going to split if in different corrals...so it wasn't a shock. Our run journeys have been very different, but we also had very different goals, so best that she went to her corral and be comfortable. I guess I've also gotten used to being alone at these things, although, it was a little bit harder for me while at WDW since so many people seemed to be running with friends or some kind of run group. I talked to a few people around me, but nothing more than some small talk in the beginning. I had two ladies near me who chatted a bit that were all decked out in Ironman gear and keeping warm in trash bags. I'd later strike up a conversation with another woman as started moving. She was super sweet and was there with her husband and younger kids. So, at least I met some people today.

I was up along the side for a while and captured several videos of the first corral moving into place. I might also have to break this up into several posts since videos get kind of funny after you add two.

Of course one of those is sideways. I'll also spare you the one that's only 5 seconds.

I also caught a little bit of the national anthem.

Now I'll be honest, one of the things I found really appealing about Disney races is the use of fireworks.

There was a glitch with one of the waves in Corral A and they didn't get any, but most did. I also heard about a glitch with release of runners. Not sure what happened, but I was so far back, it wasn't something I experienced.

Almost time to start...

And just like that...we're off! The first mile or so was pretty boring. I believe Chip & Dale were the first character stop, but the line was insanely long. It's the 5k...and I probably should have stopped for all of them, but I just wasn't feeling it...really any of them, but this didn't shock me. I'm not big on stopping for characters in general. I like surroundings and stuff vs. me with characters. This was my very first picture I took during the race.

Obviously, the welcome to EPCOT is cool, but if you've ever listened to anyone's runDisney race videos, you hear all of the "Caution Runners" announcements. And I believe this is the first time you hear it on the 5k course...Caution Runners- Speed Bumps Ahead. It is so distinctly runDisney that I started tearing up. Yes...I cried about a speed bump announcement! This next one had the tears streaming down my face...

The bright light ahead is a torch...a World Showcase torch. Yup...I lost it! I pulled it together, but I had a moment.

I tried to take some pics as I ran, but it's dark and running and stills just don't play well in the dark.

Around this time, I also started getting texts from my friend. She sent me one about how she ran the entire first mile...and not too much later, I got one about her being finished. Meanwhile, I've just entered the heart of Epcot!

Here's the next character! It's a good one too, but I just again didn't feel like stopping...well, stopping and getting into the line. I did stop to get this.

And more bad movement shots...

As I came back around, I stopped/slowed for some pictures...

Trip Report COMPLETED- Chickie RUNS Wonderland...and goes MAD!!!

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