This is my first stab at a trip report so bear with me. We had left Cincinnati on Friday at about 2:30 heading for Macon Georgia. Departure weather was mid forties and rain. We were making great time until an accident on Southbound 75 just north of Atlanta ground traffic to a halt. Luckily, we had the necessary maps and found an alternate route using state route 92. The two hour set back finally got us into Macon at 1:00 a.m.
Up on Saturday early with the remaining part of the trip. Rolled into Orlando at about 2:00. The level of traffic heading the opposite way was surprising. We pulled into the Caribbean Beach Resort at around 2:30. Even though I had requested Aruba or Jamaica, we ended up in Building 13 of Barbados. Still loved it. 1338 to be exact. We took a couple of hours to explore the resort and start our dept gathering at Old Port Royale’s gift shop. Man stuff adds up quick. Had a quick bite to eat and got cleaned up and then it was off to Epcot. Epcot you say. . .why Epcot. Well our scheduled day at Epcot later in the week ends late afternoon (Cirque in the evening) and we wanted to make sure we got to see Illuminations. So we hit the bus stop (short walk and a short wait) and we were off to our first Disney experience.
We got in a little earlier than planned so we decided to do a few things. Kids wanted to ride ‘the big ball’ so we went first to Spaceship Earth. Zero wait. . .a trend for the week???? The kids really liked the ride and spotted a hidden Mickey. We then headed over to Mexico and Norway and rode the rides there. Maelstrom was a hit. We then found a spot just outside the bridge to Mexico to watch Illuminations. We were too late to get a close seat but most everyone was seated. I ran over to get our first taste of the Mickey Ice Cream Bar – another HIT. As the show began, the people in the fron started to stand up which started a chorus of boos and yelling to sit down. Luckily there was enough of a gap in front of us that the kids could still see. Great show. Oh and the weather in Florida was Sunny and 84. After two days of travel, we beat it back to the resort to try and get some rest. The Magic Kingdom was on the schedule for Sunday and the kids were soooo excited.
Up on Saturday early with the remaining part of the trip. Rolled into Orlando at about 2:00. The level of traffic heading the opposite way was surprising. We pulled into the Caribbean Beach Resort at around 2:30. Even though I had requested Aruba or Jamaica, we ended up in Building 13 of Barbados. Still loved it. 1338 to be exact. We took a couple of hours to explore the resort and start our dept gathering at Old Port Royale’s gift shop. Man stuff adds up quick. Had a quick bite to eat and got cleaned up and then it was off to Epcot. Epcot you say. . .why Epcot. Well our scheduled day at Epcot later in the week ends late afternoon (Cirque in the evening) and we wanted to make sure we got to see Illuminations. So we hit the bus stop (short walk and a short wait) and we were off to our first Disney experience.
We got in a little earlier than planned so we decided to do a few things. Kids wanted to ride ‘the big ball’ so we went first to Spaceship Earth. Zero wait. . .a trend for the week???? The kids really liked the ride and spotted a hidden Mickey. We then headed over to Mexico and Norway and rode the rides there. Maelstrom was a hit. We then found a spot just outside the bridge to Mexico to watch Illuminations. We were too late to get a close seat but most everyone was seated. I ran over to get our first taste of the Mickey Ice Cream Bar – another HIT. As the show began, the people in the fron started to stand up which started a chorus of boos and yelling to sit down. Luckily there was enough of a gap in front of us that the kids could still see. Great show. Oh and the weather in Florida was Sunny and 84. After two days of travel, we beat it back to the resort to try and get some rest. The Magic Kingdom was on the schedule for Sunday and the kids were soooo excited.