Trip Report Hurry back... Hurry back... (Now a trip report!)

That's right! Baby's first "post" (? perhaps peri-) pandemic Disney trip. When? Why, during the absolute brutal heat of August, of course! Details are subject to change because technicallyyyyyy my time off hasn't yet been approved however... I booked everything anyways . At the moment, looking at a stay at Pop! and will be hitting up Epcot, MK, and MGM/DHS (?). And I must be honest with you. I really must...

Yes I... I....

I'm trying to get Boo Bash tickets. Yes, Ms. I Will Never Pay for An After Hours Event is attempting to pay for an After Hours Event. But as you can see, it sure ain't working! So that is up in the air right now because I got bored calling over and over again. Honestly feel like I'm spending more money than usual but rationalizing it by saying "ohhhh but I haven't been in sooooooo long". And if I'm being ENTIRELY HONEST, the big allure for Boo Bash is more Haunted Mansion time lol.

How the heck does one get a boarding group for ROTR these days? What's the freshest strategy? Also I have no dining reservations because I can't decide where I should eat/if it's worth sitting down for a real meal. Any recommendations?

It sure has been a while (I was kinda too bummed out to read the forums without being able to go), so hi everyone!!!

 

[Tuvalu]

So you’re the one who broke LWTL! It’s been down this entire week.

BUT…..for the second time this week (and the third time this summer) my doombuggy stopped at the ballroom scene! It was two minutes instead of three, but still fab!

 

[tonystark]

So you’re the one who broke LWTL! It’s been down this entire week.

Honestly I was thinking about that - whatever it was that was wrong with my ride-through, it was some sort of alarm because CMs kept having to walk through the ride with flashlights to go turn it off or check what was triggering it. I can't believe you keep getting stopped at the Ballroom scene! I got stuck in the graveyard right in front of one of the pop up ghosts but it did not pop up... I was on edge for the entire time waiting for it.

 

[tonystark]

This crappy picture is just to say that I sat at the load area for 20 minutes lol. I couldn't get off once the gates closed because the CM was struggling to get them open and get the ride back up and running, so he focused on the ride (I don't blame him lol) Also not a single animatronic was moving in this scene. Don't the birds at least do SOMETHING usually? Idk.

(ever stop to think about how clunky that phrase is??? I write for fun in my free time and every time I get to a point where it could be were/was I sit there for 30 minutes and agonize over it. I wish that was me sounds fine, I wish that were me sounds WEIRD but serves to distinguish that you are WISHING for something.... but it still looks weird).

Golden hour in the greenhouse

This was kind of eerie, tbh!

No one was really staring at me, except for.... that one right in the middle giving me the side-eye.

Potato Woman bade me goodnight and congratulated me on the fact that ATTRACTION 19 (was) COMPLETE!

For attraction 20, there was only one place to go, since I was in the same building. As I got off of LWTL, the CMs greeted me with "you made it!" and I sure did survive.

You knew this was going to happen. Walking on once again!

Crappier seats this time. Had I not read this sign before take-off, I would have flung myself out of the seat and also unbuckled my seatbelt somehow in that order. ATTRACTION 20 COMPLETE! I was really tired, so it was time to make my way out of the park and go to BED, but there were two non-attraction tasks to complete.

 

[tonystark]

Objective 1: Admire SSE with her nighttime lighting.

I tried SO HARD to capture the flags billowing all at the same time but they would not cooperate. 3/6 will have to do.

Just pretend all of those people aren't there and it would be a good picture.

Objective 2: Wait in this long [REDACTED] line for ice cream. For some inexplicable (understaffing) reason, there was only one CM scooping ice cream and one CM ringing people up. This line moved SO SLOW and I was ready to give up and get a Mickey Bar or something, but I persevered.

I had actually never been inside of L'Artisans des Glaces and thought that the decor was very cute (très chic... I mean not really but that's the only French I know)

This was absolutely NOT worth the wait! Nor was it worth the price (5.75 for a SINGLE SCOOP). This was the Candied Peanuts with Chocolate Peanut Fudge ice cream, and I did not have a single piece of fudge. It was really boring and just had a bunch of candied peanuts to chew through. I should have gone with ol' reliable chocolate or something, because this was trash. Do not recommend.

It had also been so LONG since I had a water break that I paid out of pocket for a water, like a lunatic. I mean, at least it was Evian.... but still... bonkers.

Before heading over to the Skyliner, I decided to check out the new bathrooms in France. They were okay.... I mean, they were bathrooms. I think there aren't that many stalls (what you see here is what you get) for how busy this area of the park is about to be, but hey, what do I know.

In line... why couldn't that have been mine I actually don't think I got on a single themed gondola during my trip. Boo.

 

[RememberWhen]

View attachment 583043
Objective 1: Admire SSE with her nighttime lighting.
View attachment 583044
I tried SO HARD to capture the flags billowing all at the same time but they would not cooperate. 3/6 will have to do.
View attachment 583045
Just pretend all of those people aren't there and it would be a good picture.
View attachment 583046

View attachment 583047
Objective 2: Wait in this long [REDACTED] line for ice cream. For some inexplicable (understaffing) reason, there was only one CM scooping ice cream and one CM ringing people up. This line moved SO SLOW and I was ready to give up and get a Mickey Bar or something, but I persevered.
View attachment 583048
I had actually never been inside of L'Artisans des Glaces and thought that the decor was very cute (très chic... I mean not really but that's the only French I know)
View attachment 583049
This was absolutely NOT worth the wait! Nor was it worth the price (5.75 for a SINGLE SCOOP). This was the Candied Peanuts with Chocolate Peanut Fudge ice cream, and I did not have a single piece of fudge. It was really boring and just had a bunch of candied peanuts to chew through. I should have gone with ol' reliable chocolate or something, because this was trash. Do not recommend.
View attachment 583050
It had also been so LONG since I had a water break that I paid out of pocket for a water, like a lunatic. I mean, at least it was Evian.... but still... bonkers.
View attachment 583051
Before heading over to the Skyliner, I decided to check out the new bathrooms in France. They were okay.... I mean, they were bathrooms. I think there aren't that many stalls (what you see here is what you get) for how busy this area of the park is about to be, but hey, what do I know.
View attachment 583052
In line... why couldn't that have been mine I actually don't think I got on a single themed gondola during my trip. Boo.

I actually (in my very limited experience) prefer the non-themed ones. They’re easier to see out of and you can admire the themed ones around you.

 

[tonystark]

They’re easier to see out of

me riding the skyliner because I don't want to see out of it

 

[tonystark]

You guys read my reports because I get you the best photographs of Walt Disney World. I know this. That is why I snapped these shots for you as I rode the Skyliner back to Pop!

It was during this voyage that I began to think... my God, did I lock the car???? Yes, of course I did. I remember doing that. I locked the car. I locked it. But... Did I lock it, really? Resignedly, I made my way back to my room to get the car keys and wander through the parking lot as I struggled to remember where I parked in the first place.

I took a picture from roughly where I was parked to remind myself (as IF I WOULD SHOW MY VEHICLE after having shown you many gratuitous inadvertent leg pics, what do you TAKE ME FOR!!!!)

The car was locked. I locked it again, since I was there. After that, I hurried back to my room, showered, got into bed, read a chapter of my book, and conked OUT.

TOTAL ATTRACTIONS FOR DAY 1: 20
TOTAL STEP COUNT FOR DAY 1: 26,274

I awoke refreshed and truly excited because I was going to MK today! With the state of EPCOT (atrocious), MK has truly become my favorite park. IDK if EPCOT will ever reclaim the title.

Literally the first thing I did upon waking was order breakfast. I was never one for Mobile Ordering in the past (I don't know why, it was always so much faster LOL but I was one of the fools standing in line at Cosmic Rays to order my chicken strips) but now with no other choice, I was IN THERE at 8:02 AM. I had read that slots could get filled up (which seems bonkers), so I was taking no chances. Then, I got dressed and ready for the day and walked through the Food Court/Main Hall/Whatever We Are Calling that Building

And I got a seat

So much for not rope dropping, I was strolling up to MK at 8:45 when opening was at 9. I mean, I could have been there at 8 had I been really keen...

They had just removed the walls/scaffolding and this was certainly a sight for sore eyes. Even with how conflicted I feel about WDW and my enjoyment when there after this trip (more to come) I would love to just be standing here right now. Provided that the park was empty, of course.

 

[chimchimcheree]

View attachment 583419
They had just removed the walls/scaffolding and this was certainly a sight for sore eyes. Even with how conflicted I feel about WDW and my enjoyment when there after this trip (more to come) I would love to just be standing here right now. Provided that the park was empty, of course.

She's beauty, she's grace...

 

[tonystark]

Also took the time to admire some of the carved pumpkins since I was here for very early spooky season.

Not pictured, a HUGE GROUP of professionally dressed CMs (management and higher ups I assume) standing by the walls on the right and for a moment I thought my time had come. I thought that Bob Iger stood among them, and I thought that all the times I have dragged him on Twitter were going to come to a culmination (jk I would have taken a covert picture of him while losing my REDACTED). But it wasn't him LOL. Heart pounding with adrenaline at the encounter with my faux-nemesis, it was time to see what that darn castle was looking like these days.

Fall decor tings.

I'M SORRY I WAS JUST TRYING TO SOAK UP THE Main Street (my computer didn't want me to shout that at you) VIBE!!!

a SPEAKER?! ILLUSION SHATTERED #NSFWMagic. Once I noticed that one, I started noticing A LOT for the rest of my trip.

Is this really the best Castle pic I could get for you guys? I guess. I'll be straight up, I don't care for the new color scheme (I do like the blue though I GUESS!) but I really, really hate the gold spiral thread things for the 50th.

OMG I got tall! I always go left at the hub (because of reasons... you know what those reasons are)... are there people out there who turn right?! Are there PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO GO THROUGH THE CASTLE????

Me and all my closest friends!!!

She's smizing and futilely attempting to be socially distant LOL (that goes out the window at MK very shortly after this picture).

9:04 am

 

[Sandurz]

wow, the raw natural talent on display in your Skyliner pics………I’ve never even ridden it one time, and yet it feels like I’m right there on the Skyliner….looking out over the glory of the resort (through the plastic of a to-go cup or a perhaps a smudged pair of swim goggles)

 

[tonystark]

wow, the raw natural talent on display in your Skyliner pics………I’ve never even ridden it one time, and yet it feels like I’m right there on the Skyliner….looking out over the glory of the resort (through the plastic of a to-go cup or a perhaps a smudged pair of swim goggles)

believe me, i have to hold back sometimes because i fear my artistic brilliance might blind the members of this forum. a constant struggle. thank you for your appreciation of my artistry.

 

[tonystark]

ATTRACTION 21 COMPLETE!

I got right back in line lol

Honestly, you all know this - HM is my happy place. I could just wander this ride forever and never return to the real world and be quite satisfied. I'd filter feed on the ashes spread throughout the ride if necessary, or maybe people would toss me snacks like at a zoo exhibit.

DUN DUN DUNdunDUN
ATTRACTION 22 COMPLETE!

I popped into Memento Mori and was appalled to see

Um, EXCUSE ME? I wear the OG design and I much prefer it, but I don't like the netted backs anyways. While in here, there was some drama - a woman was talking to the CM about the new two-item limit for guests on certain purchases. Interestingly, the CM (this was Aug 16th) said that Disney would be cracking down even harder and likely expanding the limit to more items. Lo, a little over a week later, she was right. That must be a first?? I'll ask a bus driver next time. ANYWAYS, while they are chatting (and I am admiring an item I absolutely knew I would be buying that night before leaving), apparently "PixieDustShopper" themselves was in the store, because the lady talking to the CM about the limit lowered her voice as PixieDustShopper stepped out like ".... that was PixieDustShopper". Meanwhile I was like

I made a note on my phone to look up what the [REDACTED] PixieDustShopper is. Now I know.

Nice to see since last time it was all dredged.

I don't know why I took this picture but... enjoy

IT'S TIME FOR THE WILDEST RIDE IN THE WI-LDER-NESS!

Just imagine I'm one of these people because ATTRACTION 23 (was) COMPLETE!

 

[Ellen Ripley]

i know you were having fun before? because your pictures are good

 

[ArmoredRodent]

I don't know why I took this picture but... enjoy

1) Because some of us spent hours at the Shooting Gallery as kids?
2) Because one of the most-used (and now closed) Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom video game terminals is just to the left of the Shooting Gallery (where some of us spent hours at the terminals as adults)?
3) Because one of the most successful DVC sales locations is to the left of the SotMK game terminal (where we would walk through/past as quickly as possible)?
4) Because they used to have "streetmosphere" cowboy "shootouts" in that area long ago?

 

[MegRuss626]

Are there PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO GO THROUGH THE CASTLE????

When your 3 year old chooses The Little Mermaid as her first ride of the day, you become “those people”

 

[tonystark]

i know you were having fun before? because your pictures are good

sometimes I can take a decent picture! most of the time though... I'm on the move so they come out all blurry.

3) Because one of the most successful DVC sales locations is to the left of the SotMK game terminal (where we would walk through/past as quickly as possible)?

how it feels whenever I see a DVC booth at the parks

When your 3 year old chooses The Little Mermaid as her first ride of the day, you become “those people”

can't wait to drag my screaming, sobbing hypothetical future child onto HM when all they really want to ride is IASW (you have my sympathy)

 

[tonystark]

Time to make my way over to breakfast (I'm not even a breakfast person so this was another "first" for me, usually I would just starve it out until lunch but... needs must). I enjoyed this little bit of theming that I'd never stopped to read before.

YEAHHHH! This was everything I dreamed it would be. I don't like bananas or blueberries, however, if you smother them in enough Nutella... (excuse me I meant chocolate-hazelnut spread) then I'm willing to inhale what you place in front of me. So much so that I accidentally cut off a piece of parchment paper with my waffle (I eat with a fork and knife #fancyliving) and have a small crisis of it being stuck in my throat. Thankfully

I was being good and hydrating with my child cup of water, so I chugged this and hoped for the best. Eventually, the feeling of something pointy in my throat stopped (hurrah!) and I still enjoyed my breakfast despite sabotaging myself.

There may not be parades, but believe me, your way can still be blocked by cavalcades. Some things never change.

A pirate's life for you!

Back of the boat life. Squarely in the middle of the bench. Those cannon blasts better think TWICE.

Oh, to be a drunken pirate surrounded by a gaggle of piglets.
ATTRACTION 24 COMPLETE!

 

[Sandurz]

Points for historical accuracy...in the 18th century, at the original Sleepy Hollow Refreshments, everybody actually ate the paper with their Nutella waffles. That's just what they thought you were meant to do. And they liked it! Palates were different back then I guess.

as I do not want this TR to end, I will not be going back to the first post to see how long this trip is...hoping it is approx. 2 weeks long and we're just getting started

 

[k8einwdw]

There may not be parades, but believe me, your way can still be blocked by cavalcades. Some things never change.

Oooh a Piglet, Eeyore, and Pooh “disneybound” perhaps?

 

[tonystark]

Oooh a Piglet, Eeyore, and Pooh “disneybound” perhaps?

I did not even realize that lol but that is pretty subtle of them. #props.