Trip Report Five Years Flies When You're Having Fun!

WE'RE BACK!
(Did you even know we had left?)​

That's right, M and I just got back from another Disney trip that occurred before I even finished my previous trip report. It's been a busy two months! I didn't even have time to make a PTR!

Who: Me and M (with a quick cameo by my brother, Jay)
What: An extended weekend Disney vacation
Where: WDW Swan
When: October 26-30, 2019
Why: Our five year wedding anniversary

Stay tuned for food, drinks, and lots of FUN!

 

[bee]

Day 4, cont.

After lunch we showered and rested for a bit before getting ready for our anniversary dinner. Originally I booked Flying Fish but then we decided we would rather go to California Grill. The only problem was...there were no CG reservations to be found! But I kept checking daily, and luckily I found one about ten days before we left. Woohoo!

We didn't want to deal with the MK bus and having to go through MK security just to get to the Contemporary, so we opted to take a Lyft from the Swan. Usually when we call a Lyft on WDW property we are matched with a driver instantly and only have to wait one or two minutes for them to arrive. However, the app took a very long time to find a driver, and then it said they were 10 minutes away. We had gotten to the lobby and called the car at 5:30 for a 6:00 reservation, because usually that would have been plenty of time to get to CG a little early, but it looked like that would not be the case tonight. So, while we waited, I took a bunch of pictures of the Swan lobby. There is a long table when you first walk in that has lots of random stuff on top, mostly related to plants and/or flowers.

I found it interesting that the flower book was in three languages.

FINALLY our driver arrived and it looked like we would arrive at the Contemporary right at our reservation time, so we would be a couple of minutes late. I know they won't cancel my reservation or anything, but I HATE being late for anything. We got out of the car at 6:01 and hurried up the escalator to the CG check in desk. When we arrived there was a huge line just to check in, so even if we'd been early we might have been late by the time we actually checked in. Since there was such a backup I didn't feel quite so bad.

It seemed everyone before us had an issue, too. People didn't have their entire party ready, people didn't have a reservation and didn't understand why they couldn't just go up, etc. So we were quite relieved to finally reach the desk about 6:15. The CM wished us a happy anniversary and sent us to the elevator to a pager, where the elevator CM ALSO wished us a happy anniversary!

Once we got upstairs we had a bit of time to wait so we took a self-guided tour of the wine on display.

Made in 1988...just like me!

I actually didn't notice the bee at first, but I noticed "Honig" which means "honey" in German, and THEN I noticed the bee!

Skywalker!

"We're just going to share one bottle of wine!"

Up next: Dinner!

 

[bee]

Day 4, cont.

Soon we were seated at a booth/table combo with good views of MK. Our server, Angela, greeted us and asked where we're from. She is from Pennsylvania and has family who live in NJ so we had a fun talk about how everyone hates Jersey. She also congratulated us on our anniversary. I asked for the vegetarian menu because CG has a separate menu where you can pick four items from a list of ten or so for a fixed price.

And of course I had to check out the wine list.

We actually both decided to order from the regular menu. The plant-based menu is all vegan, and while we like plenty of vegan foods, there were some items with cheese we really wanted. @dizfan917

After we placed our orders we checked out the view.

Angela brought out the bread service.

YUM! While we do miss the variety of bread that CG previously served, the sourdough loaf was deeeeeeeelicious and the accompanying oil was a great complement.

Drinks

We both felt more like cocktails than wine tonight. I had the Ancho Rancho Margarita and M had some kind of Old Fashioned that I can't find the exact name of. We both really liked these. The marg was actually spicy! As we were ordering the drinks I started to get our IDs out (I carry both IDs plus all essential cards in a small wallet when we're at Disney) and Angela said, "Don't worry, I'm not going to ID you." She said while she's sure we are under 30 (thanks! We are exactly 30), she knew we weren't under 21 because we've been married for five years. Even if we had gotten married at 18, that would still make us 23.

Our appetizers arrived soon.

Heirloom Tomato Salad

Goat Cheese Ravioli (really raviolo)

YUM! We've had the raviolo before and loved it, and I looove tomatoes so having a plate full of fresh and flavorful tomatoes (PLUS CHEESE) was

Angela kept the pace of the meal relaxed and made sure we were ready for our entrees before having them prepared.

Forbidden Roll

Heirloom Tomato Pizza...again with the tomatoes!

We shared everything and everything was SOOOOO good! We also each ordered another drink.

Blackberry Sour (?) for me and Honey Bee for M!

I think we both slightly preferred our first drinks but these were very good as well. The blackberry drink was sweeter than I thought it would be but still good.

We didn't even look at the dessert menu because we were so full, BUT Angela brought us a complimentary anniversary treat!

I don't remember what these were called, but they were like little handmade candies. They were very tasty!

This was yet another winning meal at California Grill! The food and service were excellent and we enjoyed the views. We opted not to stick around or return for the fireworks because we were pretty tired and had an early flight the next morning.

Up next: Wrapping up our last night

 

[lostpro9het]

The beer was...fine. I'm glad we shared one because neither of us loved it and we won't get it again.

That is an accurate assessment of that beer. Very forgettable but cool that they brew a beer for the Swalphin.

 

[bee]

Day 4, cont.

We went downstairs and called a Lyft to get back to the Swan. As we waited we noticed this "interesting" trash can:

I don't remember having to wait way too long for this ride.

After a quick ride back to the Swan we checked out the view from the window at the end of the hallway.

And how could we end the night without one more visit to Chill??

This time M had a mudslide and I had a lemonade with vodka.

Up next: Departure day

 

[bee]

Day 5: Wednesday, October 30

The day began with a 4:15am alarm and we quickly got dressed. The night before M had made some coffee and put it in the fridge, so we had iced coffee ready to go.

Until next time, Dolphin!

We called a Lyft and once again it took quite awhile to be matched to a driver. We have taken plenty of rideshare rides this early in the morning and not had issues, so I'm really not sure what was going on this trip. But eventually we were on our way to the airport and only a little behind schedule.

Bag drop went smoothly and security didn't take long at all (for once!). We grabbed some breakfast sandwiches from Jersey Mike's.

We had purchased Early Bird Check-in for this trip because our flight was at 6:55am and we did NOT want to get up that early the day before. We were both in the A group in the 40s and we got our favorite seats!

We took off a few minutes early and got to watch the sunrise from the plane.

My phone pics don't even do it justice. The colors were sooooo vibrant and gorgeous and it made waking up way too early *almost* worth it.

Soon we were landing in Nashville for our brief layover. We were hungry again and wanted coffee so we went to O'Charley's so we would be able to get a refill or two on our coffees.

Veggie scramble

Strawberry waffles

As we were eating we got notifications that our flight to Newark was delayed. It wasn't a long delay, but still!

Anyone else think this carpet design resembles a footprint? See the five smaller circles that look like toes??

Up next: The end

 

[bee]

Day 5, cont.

We finally boarded and the delay ended up not being as bad as predicted. We didn't get our desired exit row, but the FAs announced that the flight was not full so we could spread out.

While we were eating second breakfast earlier we could see this truck from the restaurant window. The window had a shade and it was kind of dark outside so at first we thought "Hiller" said something very different.

Since the flight wasn't full boarding didn't take too long and we took off pretty quickly.

Empty!

As we approached NJ we could see it was rather foggy outside!

Normally we have a clear view of the Manhattan skyline from here.

Despite the delays we landed nearly on time. We collected our bags and called a Lyft and went home. Since we had hardly any groceries in the fridge we ordered some Thai curries for a late lunch. And then, I had to go to work, because I am a freelancer who gets no vacation days, sick days, personal days, or any other kind of days so I always end up working right until the last minute before a trip and going back to work as soon as we get home.

As a bonus, here is a photo I posted to Instagram on my way to work:

Most days I take a bus directly from my town to work, but some days I take the light rail and then transfer to a bus right by the water. For reference, here is what that view normally looks like:

And that's the end! I'll post some final thoughts later (probably). We had a really great trip and enjoyed celebrating our anniversary with (mostly) just the two of us.

 

[Nunu]

Day 5: Wednesday, October 30

The day began with a 4:15am alarm and we quickly got dressed. The night before M had made some coffee and put it in the fridge, so we had iced coffee ready to go.

Until next time, Dolphin!

We called a Lyft and once again it took quite awhile to be matched to a driver. We have taken plenty of rideshare rides this early in the morning and not had issues, so I'm really not sure what was going on this trip. But eventually we were on our way to the airport and only a little behind schedule.

Bag drop went smoothly and security didn't take long at all (for once!). We grabbed some breakfast sandwiches from Jersey Mike's.

We had purchased Early Bird Check-in for this trip because our flight was at 6:55am and we did NOT want to get up that early the day before. We were both in the A group in the 40s and we got our favorite seats!

We took off a few minutes early and got to watch the sunrise from the plane.

My phone pics don't even do it justice. The colors were sooooo vibrant and gorgeous and it made waking up way too early *almost* worth it.

Soon we were landing in Nashville for our brief layover. We were hungry again and wanted coffee so we went to O'Charley's so we would be able to get a refill or two on our coffees.

Veggie scramble

Strawberry waffles

As we were eating we got notifications that our flight to Newark was delayed. It wasn't a long delay, but still!

Anyone else think this carpet design resembles a footprint? See the five smaller circles that look like toes??

Up next: The end

M making coffee the night before was a great idea! I totally get it, since I can't function without it, specially that early!

Breakfast looks good, the veggie scramble has spinach in it, I like that, and the waffles have lots of fresh strawberries.

I can see the "foot" on the carpet's design, too!

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

Thanks for sharing the details of your trip -- SO much fun!

And I hear you on vacations as a freelancer. I'm a marketing consultant, and the weeks before my trips mean I end up writing twice as much content for clients, working doubles beforehand, then scrambling to get caught up afterward. Sometimes I wish I could have a job where I just go on vacation, then come back and pick up where I left off.

But I also like flexibility, taking off whenever I want (even with the added work, lol), and not having a "boss." Such is life!

When's the next trip?

 

[Rista1313]

Thanks for a great Trip Report (as always) I enjoyed it so much, and I'm glad you have a wonderful anniversary!

 

[bee]

M making coffee the night before was a great idea! I totally get it, since I can't function without it, specially that early!

Breakfast looks good, the veggie scramble has spinach in it, I like that, and the waffles have lots of fresh strawberries.

I can see the "foot" on the carpet's design, too!

I typically work afternoons/evenings but I have a job as a staff singer at a church on Sunday mornings, so I always pre-make my coffee on Saturday nights.

The breakfast was good! And the coffee that came with it was quite good as well!

Thanks for sharing the details of your trip -- SO much fun!

And I hear you on vacations as a freelancer. I'm a marketing consultant, and the weeks before my trips mean I end up writing twice as much content for clients, working doubles beforehand, then scrambling to get caught up afterward. Sometimes I wish I could have a job where I just go on vacation, then come back and pick up where I left off.

But I also like flexibility, taking off whenever I want (even with the added work, lol), and not having a "boss." Such is life!

When's the next trip?

Thanks for reading! Glad I'm not the only one who scrambles before AND after a vacation to get everything done!

Next trip begins next weekend!

Thanks for a great Trip Report (as always) I enjoyed it so much, and I'm glad you have a wonderful anniversary!

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

 

[Swissmiss]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us; it was a lot of fun to read. And I didn’t see the foot so much as a lopsided hidden Mickey ...

 

[dizfan917]

Two things...

1) HOW are you 20 years younger than I am? I assume your maturity and my youthfulness (immaturity?!) make me we think we're much closer in age.

B) Life is always better with CHEESE. your pics make me want to visit California Grill again... a lot. although, I had the BEST cheese board here in town when I took Kevin out for his birthday (since he took me to JIKO...). If you're ever in Milwaukee, (first, CALL ME!!) you need to eat cheese at BACCHUS on the lakefront. it was incredible!! (and three times the size servings of cheese compared to the WDW options)

thanks for taking us along on your Anniversary Trip. What a great way to celebrate your commitment and your love!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

 

[Zipadeelady]

I'm always up for second breakfast and I second that the veggie scramble looked delicious!

Thanks for another great read.

 

[Tuvalu]

Enjoyed reading about your anniversary getaway! And happy you are making good use of your APs!

 

[ATLmouselover]

Funny - we semi-accidentally ended up at the Honig winery on our trip to Napa this summer. I'm not a big white wine drinker, but I do enjoy their Sauv Blanc. The honey BEE wine is worth a try

Enjoyed your report! It has me all "a-buzz" for our trip next week!

 

[Darstarr]

Such a great report!
But about those “Californians” comments....
‍♀

 

[Nunu]

Enjoyed your TR! Thank you for sharing your Anniversary celebration at WDW, with us.

 

[KellBelle]

Thank you for sharing your anniversary with us! Sounds like it was a blast!

 

[MinnieM123]

As usual, what an excellent TR!! By the way, I really liked your comments about the renovations in the SWAN lobby, etc. They hadn't started those, when i was there back in May, 2018.

I noticed you used (or called for) ride-share services down there. I just used taxis, or if I was at the main entrance to either Swan or Dolphin, the bell captain outside would just call over a towncar, as they always had quite a few parked at both. Never waited for any transport to the airport. So that's just a tip for the future.

 

[MickeyCB]

Loved reading along on your TR, and Happy Anniversary!