Trip Report Double Double Dip Trip June 2017 (Completed!)

12in12 · Jul 10, 2017

How do you get a free cupcake on your birthday?
I haven't been to Biergarten but it looks like a lot of fun.

Cesar R M · Jul 10, 2017

stalking! loving the photos!

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
Soon we were passing through the gates....home! Our room at the Pop wasn't ready, no biggie I'm sure we would get a text later. So we dropped our bags with bag check and headed to Disney Springs. We had a good lunch waiting for us.

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On the bus to Disney Springs!
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It was a little shocking to see the demolition at Caribbean Beach. We thought about changing resorts when Disney ran that gift card promotion but ultimately we didn't. I am glad because I think it would have made me sad. My family stayed there a lot and I have many fond memories. I'm sure it will be lovely when it is done, but staying during construction would be too much for me.
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So anyway, where did we eat.......Homecomin'! I was looking forward to this meal so much, and I was not disappointed. Well, maybe disappointed that I couldn't eat more than I did!
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I love devilled eggs but my traveling companion does not so I rarely get eat them. So I was hee-hawing about getting them at Homecomin'. I thought, 6 eggs! I can't eat 6 eggs on my own. Well, clearly you can see I went for it. And really it is 3 full eggs cut in half. We also got the hush puppies with pepper jelly and pimento cheese.

Yum, just yum. It was so good. And yes, I ate all the eggs, and I am not ashamed. I let Brad have a couple extra of the hush puppies since I had the eggs.
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Okay, I may be looking a little crazy-eyed with anticipation of the eggs.
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Our plan was to share entrees. We were going to get chicken and maybe the BBQ pork. Well that didn't work out. We both got the fried chicken (again no regrets). I had all white meat and he had all dark. Brad also got fries instead of mashed potatoes.
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Shortly after we were seated Brad spotted Art Smith, so the goal was to get a picture if we could. We missed getting one of Morimoto last year. So I eventually got a stalkery type of photo and Brad got one with Art behind me walking with what looks like me picking my nose (it was just a scratch on the outside really) so that picture isn't going up here. He, Art, seemed to be pretty busy so we didn't want to bother him.
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Finally made it over here! Yay! So...what are hush puppies? (good choice on the mashed potatoes. I'd take that over fries almost any day)

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
So by the time we left Disney Springs, it was raining and we still hadn't gotten our text about our room. It was about 3:30 pm by the time we left Disney Springs so we should have gotten our text. So once back at the Pop we spent 20 minutes at the check in desk waiting to get our room number, most of that time was spent waiting for some big groups to get taken care of. Turns out the system for texting and emailing was down, that is why we didn't get a text.

We were in the 50's section this time, we have always been in the 70's and one time in the 90's. So it was nice to be in a new section. We unpacked our carry- ons and charged up our phones a little then headed to Animal Kingdom. I lamented the fact that my Teva sandals and our ponchos were in my checked bag, I was not looking forward to getting my tennis shoes wet or buying another poncho.

As I took this picture the elevator arrived, and out came the bell man with our luggage on a cart from Magical Express. So since we wanted our ponchos and I wanted my shoes we followed the bellman to our room. So now I was happy it took so long at the front desk, otherwise I would have had soggy shoes and had to put out some $$ on new ponchos (when we have 6 of them already).
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When we got to Animal Kingdom we had about 30 minutes before our fast pass for the River Journey so we spent the time wandering the land of Pandora. I just watched the movie for the first time a week prior to this, and it was pretty good. I hadn't been a fan of this land and really wasn't looking forward to it but watching the movie helped me get excited for it and appreciate what was built here. I was a little bummed it was rainy and cloudy when we were in there for the first time but it was fine. I only took a few pictures, because it wasn't ideal conditions and I really wanted to stop and notice things. And upon first impressions I was impressed. Well done Disney. And it made me excited to see what would be done with Star Wars, a movie people actually care about.

Here are some rainy first impression pictures of Pandora.
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You said you are usually in the 70's section...do you ever do the room request thing? I read in The Unofficial Guide that you can request certain sections, etc, and we did that on our trip (for CBR), but didn't get the room we wanted...close to it, but not the room we really wanted. So do you request the 70's section, or is it just luck of the draw that you've usually been put there?

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
Just wandering around the Poly....
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Finally seated with a nice view of the walkway and the whole restaurant.
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What to have? Definitely some Kona pressed pot coffee. It says it serves two people, well I drank it all.
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I got the loco moco for breakfast. Rice, hamburger patty, egg and chorizo gravy. It was really good, it could have used some salt or soy sauce (like what I have used in Hawaii) but the gravy was really tasty.
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After breakfast I headed to the bus stop to catch a bus to Hollywood Studios.

Up Next: Brad's golf adventure.

That looks really yummy! I don't know why I thought Kona was a QS.

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
June 21: Happy Birthday Brad!

For Brad's birthday breakfast he picked Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge. We have been meaning to eat here again for awhile but we kept canceling it so today we made it. Really he wanted unlimited bacon for his birthday!
So here are some shots of AKL. We took an Uber over there and were early as we usually are so I explored and he relaxed in the lobby.
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Brad in the lobby
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It was comforting to know it isn't just my camera that fogged up with condensation. I thought the window looked cool (no pun intended)
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Then down to the restaurant.
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My plate...
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What are the things on your plate that look like massive tater tots?

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
We stopped and did a Photopass before heading into World Showcase.
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We headed to Mexico to La Cava de Tequila! I had wanted to stop here the last couple of trips but the line was always long. So we got there at 11 and thought we would have to ride the boat ride and then go to La Cava because it supposedly doesn't open until 11:30. Well, we were happy that it was open and we were the first customers. I wanted a snack, Brad didn't because we were going to have lunch at the Biergarten. I pointed out that the chips and salsa were only $4 and we didn't have to eat all of them. We got the chips and salsa, and yes we ate them all. There were plenty of chips but not overflowing, it did not ruin our lunch.
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I got the avocado one, and encouraged Brad to get it too. He had not liked his margarita the last time and reluctantly (because he claims to hate avocado) took a sip of mine and he like it.
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So this time he still hee-hawed around about getting the avocado one and still claimed he wouldn't like it because of the avocado. So he got the Maelstrom margarita that had mango, orange and habanero pepper. He was concerned about the pepper but more convinced he wouldn't like the avocado margarita. He liked this one better than the passion fruit one he got before. He said the heat wasn't strong but wished there was more mango taste. We did try a sip of each others and the heat wasn't bad but avocado is still for me. When we were walking away he told me he wished he had gotten the avocado one like me because he thinks he would really like it. Really!?! I just looked at him and we continued on our way. I bet anything the next time we go there he will tell me he doesn't like avocado and gets something else and then complains about it.
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We had some time before our Biergarten ADR so we wandered the world, well at least until we got to American and turned back.
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We were able to catch a performance of the Voices of Liberty, our second favorite musical act in WDW. Dapper Dans are number 1.
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Oh I LOVE the Voices of Liberty!! They are my favorite! You know they have a sort of break-off group called Voctave?

Songbird76 · Jul 10, 2017

ajrwdwgirl said:
The Biergarten is one of our favorites. Being from Wisconsin sausage, beer, and polka music are part of being a Wisconsinite. I hated gym class but when we had the polka dancing unit, I actually liked going to class. I also liked the floor hockey unit, but that is a different story that involves some high sticking. Anyway, I wanted to go out a polka. It made me sad to see people doing improper polkas, but Brad was broadcasting the show on Facebook for his friend who used to live in Germany.

We hadn't done lunch in a while because we really like the sauerbraten roast and that is only served at dinner. But lunch worked better with our schedule. It was still a VERY yummy lunch and there were some good German style meatballs that were at lunch that tasted fantastic. Plus I make a really good sauerbraten so I'll just make it at home. I don't usually care for the desserts there but there was a new chocolate thing that was good, and it wasn't the black forest cake.

Our tablemates, at least the ones right next to us, were from California and were fun to talk to.
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A very modest first plate.
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Brad and I made a pit stop on the way out at the Art of Disney and some some cool stuff.
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I wish I had more wall space in my kitchen. I would have loved this sketch to frame.
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I'm not a huge Dumbo fan but I thought this painting was excellent. I couldn't stop staring at it, well obviously I did since I left the store.
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I'm so jealous about your Biergarten meal! We went there last Summer for lunch and there was no entertainment whatsoever. I had booked that meal mostly because I wanted to see the show and I was so disappointed that there WAS no show. I don't know what time it starts, but it must be after 1:00 pm because we were there for the noon slot and nothing started even by the time we left.

amjt660 · Jul 10, 2017

Belated Happy B day to Brad
Epcot day looked like fun
Love your EC retro tshirt

Biergarten is out right fun if you get into it.
If the others at your table are also enjoying the atmosphere it just adds to the good time.

We live in Waterloo which is right beside the city of Kitchener
Kitchener is the host the second biggest Oktoberfest festival outside in the world (Munich ,Germany is the largest)
The city was originally named Berlin but the name was changed in 1916 during the WWI.

You should come up sometime - usually start the first weekend in October and goes for 9 days (2 weekends).

Max

becca_ · Jul 10, 2017

Reading about improper polka-ing made me laugh, my sophomore year of HS we did Hello, Dolly! and I was Ermengarde, there was a scene where there was a polka competition so we all had to learn how to polka... long story short, if the competition was in real life (and not scripted) I would have lost.. badly :hilarious:

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

Missy_May said:
My husband's favorite Disney restaurant is Boma. We plan our other reservations around it since they only have ribs occasionally, and they are his absolute favorite Disney food. Last time we went rib nights were Wednesday and Saturday.

Good to know about the ribs. My husband loves ribs and would be interested in trying Boma ribs. Do they have any particular seasoning?

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

RedNoseMickey said:
How do you get a free cupcake on your birthday?
I haven't been to Biergarten but it looks like a lot of fun.

I signed us up for the Sprinkles Club, and a perk is a free cupcake on your birthday. We were unable to use mine, my birthday is a week after hubby's, because we didn't want to go back over to DS for just a cupcake.

The Biergarten is a lot of fun, you are seated with other people. We have been fortunate to sit with people who are friendly and fun to talk to. It helps that hubs is an extrovert and can strike up a conversation with pretty much anyone. One year we were seated with a member on these boards so that was pretty cool.

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

Cesar R M said:
stalking! loving the photos!

Thanks for the compliment. :happy:

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

Songbird76 said:
Finally made it over here! Yay! So...what are hush puppies? (good choice on the mashed potatoes. I'd take that over fries almost any day)

I think hush puppies are made from cornmeal and have some spices (like onion or garlic or something) and fried. So basically fried bread! So tasty. Mashed potatoes are the best. Hubs is not really a fan of mashed potatoes, his mom made terrible ones that were pasty. I didn't eat too many of her meals before she passed but that stands out in my head, so if that was his early experience with mashed potatoes I don't blame him.

Songbird76 said:
That looks really yummy! I don't know why I thought Kona was a QS.

It was really yummy. You were probably thinking of Captain Cook's that is the quick service at the Poly and they serve the famous Tonga Toast like Kona does.

Songbird76 said:
What are the things on your plate that look like massive tater tots?

They were tater tots, they had a seasoning on them that was really good and they were nice and crispy. But they were just normal sized tots, perhaps it is the angle of shooting that makes them loot massive. I love a good tot.

Songbird76 said:
Oh I LOVE the Voices of Liberty!! They are my favorite! You know they have a sort of break-off group called Voctave?

I didn't know that. Does the other group perform at Disney or just off property? I'll have to see if they have any stuff on iTunes.

Songbird76 said:
I'm so jealous about your Biergarten meal! We went there last Summer for lunch and there was no entertainment whatsoever. I had booked that meal mostly because I wanted to see the show and I was so disappointed that there WAS no show. I don't know what time it starts, but it must be after 1:00 pm because we were there for the noon slot and nothing started even by the time we left.

We learned the hard way that the band doesn't start until after 1 pm. I think their first performance is at 1:15 pm. We had a noon meal there and I was determined to see the band, so there was a lot of eating at that lunch as we held on until their first performance. Now I might book a 12:30 at the earliest, that way most of the eating is in by the first show.

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

amjt660 said:
Belated Happy B day to Brad
Epcot day looked like fun
Love your EC retro tshirt

Biergarten is out right fun if you get into it.
If the others at your table are also enjoying the atmosphere it just adds to the good time.

We live in Waterloo which is right beside the city of Kitchener
Kitchener is the host the second biggest Oktoberfest festival outside in the world (Munich ,Germany is the largest)
The city was originally named Berlin but the name was changed in 1916 during the WWI.

You should come up sometime - usually start the first weekend in October and goes for 9 days (2 weekends).

Max

Brad says thank you for the birthday wishes. And thanks for the compliment on my shirt. I'm a retro Epcot girl and I was looking at tee public's website one day and saw the design pop up, I ordered it almost immediately.

That Oktoberfest thing sounds fantastic. I checked out the website. Just something to add to the travel list!

MySmallWorldof4 · Jul 10, 2017

Thanks for the tag!

Just getting to your tr. I keep getting pulled away from the priority of the Forums.

I need more hours in a day!!!

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

That afternoon/evening we headed to the Magic Kingdom to see Happily Ever After again. Upon arrival I had another 20 minute wait to get through security. It was crazy packed and hardly any security lines open. Very frustrating. Once I was through, Brad had nicely gotten me a bottle of water and after standing in the hot sun for 20 minutes I sure needed it. Earlier Brad had made us a fastpass for Buzz and now it was nearing the end of that time period so we went there right away. Once we were in the queue for Buzz we noticed we had a anytime/almost anywhere fastpass on our account so we decided to use that for 7D after the fireworks. So it was Buzz and a spin on the Peoplemover and then we staked out our spot again for Happily Ever After. We got a spot at the fenceline on the Tomorrowland side of the Partners statue in the hub, so basically opposite of where we were the other night.

While we were waiting we chatted with people around us, and ate some popcorn. We particularly enjoyed talking to a family from England that was waiting right behind us. They were kind enough to offer us some of their food from Casey's (we declined) but thought that was a friendly gesture. Soon it was time for the show to start and when we stood up there was some extra room at the rail for a couple of the people from England to stand by us. Now we were packed in at the fence-line shoulder to shoulder.

Then all of a sudden a family, I don't even know where they came from as they weren't in our area waiting. We were there for a little over an hour, I like to people watch and I never saw them. Anyway, they started shoving their son (between 7-10 years old) into my husband and trying to wedge their son to the fence-line and in front of Brad. They never said anything, until Brad asked them to stop shoving into him because he was not moving. They started shoving the lady next to Brad and she moved over. I get that they wanted their kid to see, but they had the same opportunity to wait like the rest of us that had been there. I know we should be nicer but when we were nicer we were not rewarded like when we got soda dumped on us once by an angry tour group because we let kids stand in front of us to see Spectromagic, we are kind of hard-a$$es about it now. I don't know why people show up at the last minute and think they will get a good spot, or think it is okay to shove themselves or their children into people because they didn't plan well or weren't willing to give up ride time to wait for the spot they wanted. Sorry, rant over.

Well we didn't let that minor thing spoil the show. The show was still fantastic and again being by the fence-line with the buffer of the garden space to the next people in front of us was fantastic. Here are a couple pictures.

After the show we braved the crowd and made our way over to 7D to use our free fastpass. Around that time I had felt my blood sugar drop, and sure enough it was really low (actually when I checked it, it was dangerously low). So it was a good thing Storybook Treats was nearby, we got hot fudge sundaes with chocolate ice cream.

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

becca_ said:
Reading about improper polka-ing made me laugh, my sophomore year of HS we did Hello, Dolly! and I was Ermengarde, there was a scene where there was a polka competition so we all had to learn how to polka... long story short, if the competition was in real life (and not scripted) I would have lost.. badly

I don't remember there being a polka scene in Hello Dolly, just something to add to the watch list.

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

MySmallWorldof4 said:
Thanks for the tag! Just getting to your tr. I keep getting pulled away from the priority of the Forums.I need more hours in a day!!!

Thanks for reading. I know what you mean about needing more time in the day!

ajrwdwgirl · Jul 10, 2017

After our sundaes we headed over to Animal Kingdom and thought we would take advantage of the extra magic hours.

We figured there would be a decent wait time for Flights of Passage but we wanted to see the queue anyway. When we got over there the wait time was 150 minutes! 2 1/2 hours! No thanks. 90 minutes was going to be our top wait time. So we still had a fast pass for another day for FOP so we decided to just do that. I don't remember what the wait for River Journey was but it was not within an acceptable range for us either. So we decided to wander around and enjoy the night atmosphere.

Here was the passholder shirt for Pandora.

Then we had only really had popcorn and a hot fudge sundae for dinner, and I know that is a super healthy and well balanced meal we decided to get something to share at the Satuli Canteen. Despite the wait times being so large for the attractions and a lot of people milling about in the land the Canteen wasn't very crowded. I guess a lot of people don't eat dinner at 11-11:30 pm. Since it was so late we decided to share the cheeseburger pods.

The pods were okay, a little dry, they needed a little ketchup for dipping. We did enjoy the slaw and the veggie chips. Maybe we are behind the food trends living in rural Wisconsin, but we had never had Boba balls before (they are the little white balls on the slaw), but they were really fun to eat. The dish could have used a few more.

I also tried the green beer. I had read some raves about it, but it was just standard beer. I've had better and I've had worse. The Canteen had some cool details and design inside. We were going to try to come back another time for one of the bowls.

After our snack/dinner the wait times had not decreased so we decided to head out for the night.

Trip Report Double Double Dip Trip June 2017 (Completed!)

12in12

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Cesar R M

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Songbird76

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Songbird76

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Songbird76

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amjt660

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becca_

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ajrwdwgirl

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MySmallWorldof4

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