It has almost been a week since I arrived back home from The Most Magical Place On Earth and I have to say, it gets better every time. And this time was indeed the best! (that is until next time) We (my father and I) arrived on Thursday, July 10th through rain showers that had just ended when we pulled up to the outskirts of the property (I guess that's what you call it)... where you start beginning to see the purple lightposts (a feature that I had forgotten but got more excited when I saw them!) Anyway, I had been to Disney before, the last time in March 2000, during the Millennium Celebration (another outstanding celebration). And time takes away and adds to, so I knew I was in for something spectacular. Shoot, anything Disney does is spectacular!
The first adventure was finding the resort, which was not as hard as expected, yet an adventure nonetheless. I got more and more excited as we passed the other resort and park entrances on our way to our haven for the week, Port Orleans - Riverside. We had just gotten in under the wire for the Fairytale Vacation Package - which we thought was a great deal - and a plus for us since we had never stayed on property before nor for that length of time, nor for that amount of access (Unlimited Hopper). Amidst the pre-excitement, I was so excited at finally arriving that I forgot to have neither my camera nor my camcorder out to get pictures! Alas!
After we had gotten our stuff in our room, we both set out for MGM to catch Fantasmic. We had both seen the show before, so we knew what to expect. Still a captivating show, no matter how many times seen. I made it a point to bring our video camera; the last time, I had just brought my disposable cameras and then saw everybody have their camcorders.
But mainly for my mother, who has bad pain all over and isn't able to get around much... just to bring some of the magic home [overused cliché, I know ]. But the video camera gave out 5 minutes into the show but I'd get revenge later
The next day, we set out early for MGM to catch the other stuff. Good stuff all around; we tried to do a lot, but we didn't rush ourselves to death. We found FastPass to be an invaluable resource. Favorites: Tie between Muppet*Vision and Star Tours. I'm a sucker for both.
Next day, Saturday was Animal Kingdom... We didn't get up super early to get there when it opened. Seeing stuff that we haven't seen before was the theme of this trip. However, we didn't do a lot in number at Animal Kingdom this day. (Plus it rained out the parade!) But number does not always equal value. It's Tough To Be A Bug, Kilimanjaro Safaris, and Flights of Wonder were wonderful. And just to look out and view nature is great. But the best, most spectacular show/attraction (arguably of Walt Disney World) has to be Festival of the Lion King. Hands down - the best.
Sunday was Epcot. Again, not in a hurry; just wanting to have as much fun without the “have-to-see-everything” mentality. Believe it or not, I had never been in the Living With The Land attraction. Very neat and interesting stuff. And we were so glad that they brought back Journey Into Imagination with Figment! What we were really wanting to do was go around all the World Showcase, at least once. (Previous trips hindered this from happening.) Started at Mexico and went around. And we even had time before Illuminations to go back around and look at stuff we wanted to get another glance at.
Now that I’m at home, it seems like a dream that I was there (I keep asking myself, “Did this really happen?” and not believing it.)
Illuminations was spectacular. We got finished with all we wanted to do then staked out a spot before everyone else. We chose the spot marked as Showcase Plaza. Very good spot too, as I caught everything on video camera with no hindrances. I had heard that Tapestry of Nations had been shortened and was only running once a day. But at the time of my trip, it had been taken off the guidemap and schedule of events. I missed seeing it, but I found out that the soundtrack to Illuminations that they’re selling now is different from the one offered in 2000, the one that I have and listen to religiously and anytime I want to take another trip (cause it makes Dad yearn to go too). It has different artwork on front and back, and it leaves a track off (there are 5 on the 2000 CD and 4 on the new one). Also I read that the present Tapestry of Nations track is choppy and not the original version. But anyway… Favorites: Journey Into Imagination and The American Adventure, always a classic. I also enjoyed each country’s film, those that had one.
Monday was Magic Kingdom. A magical place, don’t you think? Was very glad to see the Carousel of Progress. I remember seeing it when I was there a few times before this time and it’s still a classic. During my prep for the trip, I was saddened to see that it was potential for the chopping block; but was happy to see it had returned. I hope that people will continue to see this attraction to show that it’s got staying power. Not only is it history-making attraction (shown at the World’s Fair, one of the first to incorporate audio-animatronics), but it also shows the history of American invention and how it affected the American family.
Of course we saw, The Tiki Room. Although I have seen both versions of the show (original and Under New Management one) but I prefer the old one. There’s just something about seeing the original for the first time… Uh, I think Pirates of the Caribbean was closed the last time we went, but for the first time seeing it, I thought it was great! I had never been on the Jungle Cruise either, but it was super.
We were waiting for the Share A Dream Come True Parade, but about 15 minutes before it was to start, the bottom fell out, and boy, it came a frog-strangler! But we remedied that by going to the Hall of Presidents. See, Washington CAN sometimes help in disaster! We also saw “Small World, naturally, and then the rain started again, but we hid out in Pinocchio Village Haus. But eventually the rain started again in the middle of Spectromagic that night. In fact, Dad was behind me putting the poncho on me as I was taping the parade (We sat directly in front of the Emporium to get full view as the parade came around the flagpole. A soggy, but fun-filled day. Favorites: The Hall of Presidents, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Carousel of Progress.
Tuesday are Wednesday were considered extra days to go back and see what we wanted to see but didn’t, or get to see it again. But Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, we went to Downtown Disney. To avoid impulse buying (which is a senseless thought at Disney anyway), we tried to wait until the last couple of days to buy stuff. And we did; a bunch of it! Anyway, after that, we made it over to Animal Kingdom to see the parade (since it had been canceled the earlier time) and saw the Lion King again, to get them both on tape. And then Wednesday we went back to MGM, to catch their parade and then get ALL of Fantasmic on tape. YAY! There is something to be said about seeing stuff down there more than once. One is the sheer pleasure of seeing something as spectacular as what Disney puts on more than once. Two is the different viewpoints of each time, so if you don’t see it well this time, you can plan to see it again, almost always getting a different spot. Then afterwards, we finally broke down and got a turkey leg. We had found out about these by watching a special on the Food Network, and it seemed funny that that would be considered a delicacy. But they’re great! We shared the first one and decided we wouldn’t be back for a good while, so why not? We got another one.
Made a last trip to Fulton’s General Store late that night, to pick up some more last-minute souvenirs. Then we were on the road back home Thursday morning.
All in all, it was a good trip. Certainly one to never be forgotten.
The first adventure was finding the resort, which was not as hard as expected, yet an adventure nonetheless. I got more and more excited as we passed the other resort and park entrances on our way to our haven for the week, Port Orleans - Riverside. We had just gotten in under the wire for the Fairytale Vacation Package - which we thought was a great deal - and a plus for us since we had never stayed on property before nor for that length of time, nor for that amount of access (Unlimited Hopper). Amidst the pre-excitement, I was so excited at finally arriving that I forgot to have neither my camera nor my camcorder out to get pictures! Alas!
After we had gotten our stuff in our room, we both set out for MGM to catch Fantasmic. We had both seen the show before, so we knew what to expect. Still a captivating show, no matter how many times seen. I made it a point to bring our video camera; the last time, I had just brought my disposable cameras and then saw everybody have their camcorders.
But mainly for my mother, who has bad pain all over and isn't able to get around much... just to bring some of the magic home [overused cliché, I know ]. But the video camera gave out 5 minutes into the show but I'd get revenge later The next day, we set out early for MGM to catch the other stuff. Good stuff all around; we tried to do a lot, but we didn't rush ourselves to death. We found FastPass to be an invaluable resource. Favorites: Tie between Muppet*Vision and Star Tours. I'm a sucker for both.
Next day, Saturday was Animal Kingdom... We didn't get up super early to get there when it opened. Seeing stuff that we haven't seen before was the theme of this trip. However, we didn't do a lot in number at Animal Kingdom this day. (Plus it rained out the parade!) But number does not always equal value. It's Tough To Be A Bug, Kilimanjaro Safaris, and Flights of Wonder were wonderful. And just to look out and view nature is great. But the best, most spectacular show/attraction (arguably of Walt Disney World) has to be Festival of the Lion King. Hands down - the best.
Sunday was Epcot. Again, not in a hurry; just wanting to have as much fun without the “have-to-see-everything” mentality. Believe it or not, I had never been in the Living With The Land attraction. Very neat and interesting stuff. And we were so glad that they brought back Journey Into Imagination with Figment! What we were really wanting to do was go around all the World Showcase, at least once. (Previous trips hindered this from happening.) Started at Mexico and went around. And we even had time before Illuminations to go back around and look at stuff we wanted to get another glance at.
Now that I’m at home, it seems like a dream that I was there (I keep asking myself, “Did this really happen?” and not believing it.)
Illuminations was spectacular. We got finished with all we wanted to do then staked out a spot before everyone else. We chose the spot marked as Showcase Plaza. Very good spot too, as I caught everything on video camera with no hindrances. I had heard that Tapestry of Nations had been shortened and was only running once a day. But at the time of my trip, it had been taken off the guidemap and schedule of events. I missed seeing it, but I found out that the soundtrack to Illuminations that they’re selling now is different from the one offered in 2000, the one that I have and listen to religiously and anytime I want to take another trip (cause it makes Dad yearn to go too). It has different artwork on front and back, and it leaves a track off (there are 5 on the 2000 CD and 4 on the new one). Also I read that the present Tapestry of Nations track is choppy and not the original version. But anyway… Favorites: Journey Into Imagination and The American Adventure, always a classic. I also enjoyed each country’s film, those that had one.
Monday was Magic Kingdom. A magical place, don’t you think? Was very glad to see the Carousel of Progress. I remember seeing it when I was there a few times before this time and it’s still a classic. During my prep for the trip, I was saddened to see that it was potential for the chopping block; but was happy to see it had returned. I hope that people will continue to see this attraction to show that it’s got staying power. Not only is it history-making attraction (shown at the World’s Fair, one of the first to incorporate audio-animatronics), but it also shows the history of American invention and how it affected the American family.
Of course we saw, The Tiki Room. Although I have seen both versions of the show (original and Under New Management one) but I prefer the old one. There’s just something about seeing the original for the first time… Uh, I think Pirates of the Caribbean was closed the last time we went, but for the first time seeing it, I thought it was great! I had never been on the Jungle Cruise either, but it was super.
We were waiting for the Share A Dream Come True Parade, but about 15 minutes before it was to start, the bottom fell out, and boy, it came a frog-strangler! But we remedied that by going to the Hall of Presidents. See, Washington CAN sometimes help in disaster!
We also saw “Small World, naturally, and then the rain started again, but we hid out in Pinocchio Village Haus. But eventually the rain started again in the middle of Spectromagic that night. In fact, Dad was behind me putting the poncho on me as I was taping the parade (We sat directly in front of the Emporium to get full view as the parade came around the flagpole. A soggy, but fun-filled day. Favorites: The Hall of Presidents, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Carousel of Progress. Tuesday are Wednesday were considered extra days to go back and see what we wanted to see but didn’t, or get to see it again. But Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, we went to Downtown Disney. To avoid impulse buying (which is a senseless thought at Disney anyway), we tried to wait until the last couple of days to buy stuff. And we did; a bunch of it! Anyway, after that, we made it over to Animal Kingdom to see the parade (since it had been canceled the earlier time) and saw the Lion King again, to get them both on tape. And then Wednesday we went back to MGM, to catch their parade and then get ALL of Fantasmic on tape. YAY! There is something to be said about seeing stuff down there more than once. One is the sheer pleasure of seeing something as spectacular as what Disney puts on more than once. Two is the different viewpoints of each time, so if you don’t see it well this time, you can plan to see it again, almost always getting a different spot. Then afterwards, we finally broke down and got a turkey leg. We had found out about these by watching a special on the Food Network, and it seemed funny that that would be considered a delicacy. But they’re great! We shared the first one and decided we wouldn’t be back for a good while, so why not? We got another one.
Made a last trip to Fulton’s General Store late that night, to pick up some more last-minute souvenirs. Then we were on the road back home Thursday morning.
All in all, it was a good trip. Certainly one to never be forgotten.
