Mancation 2013 (dubbed by my 12 yr old son)

Dads 2 Boys · Mar 25, 2013

As we got closer to the front of the line, he started to feel some pretty serious anxiety more so that I expected. We of course waited for the front car (only a one car wait) and got in position. He looked over at me and said something to the effect of “why did u talk me into this”……..which cracked me up considering we were on RnR two days earlier and all the other rides for the 3+ days before. The front of Everest gives incredible views and the one I was curious about was at take-off where so many on here were freaking out about the bamboo being cut down. Can u see the backstage building….? Yes. Is it really a big deal…..NO. You see it for what, 15 seconds before the take-off. Really people…… Here is a view I love to take a picture of which prompted Steve to tell me I was flipping nuts for taking out my phone on the way up.

Gotta love the view from the top where the track breaks……

Here is where Steve experienced the thrill portion…….maybe perhaps he didn’t hide it well……LOL

The lighting they had on the Yeti was spectacular making it appear as if it was in “A” mode. If I didn’t know any better I would have thought it was moving. Steve knew it’s been in Disco mode for a while but even he thought it moved.

When we got off, he couldn’t stop talking about it and brought up something about Everest I never thought of in the 15 times I’ve been on it. It’s almost 3 rides in one. You have the small ride in the beginning going around the base up the small hill. Then you have the section going up the big hill and the reverse portion of track. Finally there is the drop and the “out of control” portion through the mountain and the caves. I love the story it tells and Steve really got it and appreciated it right off the bat.

We got FP right as we got off and walked over to Dinoland USA and took a spin on Primeval Whirl and then it was over to Flame Tree for lunch. It was 11:30 but it took 45 minutes to get our food and I’ve eaten there 3 times and never had to wait anywhere near this long. Frustrating to say the least but the food was excellent as usual and we had seat in the shade allowing us to talk and relax.

We headed back over to EE to get fastpasses again because ours ran out from before lunch and the wait was now 45 minutes. The crowds were crazy at this point in Asia so we walked over to Dinosaur. I like Dinosaur a lot and Steve went on it when it was Countdown to Extinction. He didn’t remember any of the queue whatsoever so it was almost like being on the ride for the first time.

Here is the same picture on Dinosaur that virtually every other person in the world has.

On the way back over to Everest it was picture time for Steve again. Here is where Steve got to see Pluto again and his girlfriend’s favorite, Goofy at the same time. There is a funny story about the picture but I will leave that to my compadre during his portion……..and it’s a good story.

The second Everest of the day is where we started having fun with the ride photos. I’ve seen others do and never did it myself but we talked about different things and this ride was only the beginning. This was also the ride that made him really love Everest. Again the lighting was excellent again.

The afternoon continued onto “Tough to be a Bug” which is ok for me but nothing special which ended with a good story which Steve will provide. Festival of the Lion King was so great for me but Steve enjoyed it less than I did. He liked it but for me FOTLK is one of the best stage shows in WDW…..probably since The Lion King is my favorite Disney movie.

Lots of shopping on the way out and some pics……..we went to the resort to get on the bus for DTD for our ADR @ Portobello’s and the beginning of our dirty night (ha ha……just wait….it was so wrong and not in a good way). Portobello’s was excellent . It was my first time there and we both really enjoyed it quite a bit. Here is where the night turned.

We were looking forward to shopping in DTD and a relaxing evening. Here is where the “Fifteen” Brazilian tour group showed too much about themselves….literally and figuratively. We did some shopping in Team Mickey and few other stores and went to World of Disney and got a show we weren’t expecting. While it may be acceptable for younger to middle teenage girls to dress like hookers in South America, it’s not acceptable in the US. The outfits were so tight and miniscule it was disturbing and their behavior was just as bad. Its one thing if they were 18+ and we were in a club…….if that was the case, Steve and I would have pretty damn happy checking things out. But since they were so young and their outifts were so inappropriate, we felt dirty and the atmosphere was incredibly uncomfortable. They were everywhere and neither of us felt as if we could walk around and shop without coming across as dirty old men. We wanted no part of them and most of the adults were in the same boat as us so much so that while waiting in line to pay, one woman took a picture of a girls outfit so she could send to guest relations. That I was NOT going to do thank u very much…..I don’t do child . I called Guest Relations when we returned to complain and the woman I spoke with said I was not the only person to complain about this group and specifically that Monday night. We left around 10 and went back to the resort and hang out by the lake where we could see out room and the Mickey balloon in our window (thanks to Bianca our housekeeper).

*** Look up just to the right of the peace sign.

Stephen Rock · Mar 26, 2013

Day 5 DAK and Everest, I can't wait. Honestly I love this park. I'm a huge animal person and this park really plays to my likes... except for the Jungle feeling. Now I know it's supposed to be like that. As a Marine I've done my share of time in the mud, brush and the woods. I still don't like it. I don't like when I can't see things, I like bugs even less, which is ironic as I pushed for us to go see, It's Tough to be a Bug.

As a side note, just because I can, I liked the RFID turnstiles. I thought they looked slick and even though the one I was at was quirky I love the concept. Once the bugs get worked out it will be great I think. I know there has been a lot of banter back and forth about RFID, FP, FP+ and MM+, I would just say as with any new idea it is always met with a great deal of adversity. But as with most things once we see the benefit, whether we admit it or not, we come to accept the change as positive. I've read so many negative opinions on the new ideas, but I'm all about innovation, as was Walt Disney himself. I think sometimes that piece is lost because people have such high expectations from Disney. Before I step off my soap box let me leave you with this thought, YOUR trip is what YOU make of it. This trip was so amazing because of who I was with and the experiences we had both good and bad. Honestly there were no bad experiences, because we refused to let there be. I hope and I think based on the replies to this TR that you are all seeing WDW as Bill and I did. See it for the truly wonderful and amazingly MOUSTASTIC place it is. Ok enough with that, back to the TR.

As Bill said we did the Safari first. I thought there were a perfect amount of animals seen and I wasn't disappointed in the least. It was actually way cooler than I remembered in 1998. One funny I know I will get clobbered for but I just have to share it, was when we saw the Wildebeests. There had been some talk of Meagan and M (our ladies) coming down and surprising us for the weekend we were at WDW, which did not happen due to logistics. So when the tour guide pointed out the Wildebeests I said to Bill, "Look Meagan and M made it after all." I know it was low hanging fruit and yes I went after it and no Bill did not laugh, but I did (M when you read this I LUm, disclaimer to cover my man parts). I missed the Poacher story line I understand that it offended some, but as a conservation heavy park I thought it fit in. Sadly it is no more. It was still an enjoyable attraction and a great start to the day. Next up Pangani Exploration Trail.

Pangani was so very cool, from the fish, to the birds, the reptiles and everything in between. Nothing could come close though to the Gorillas. Now in 98 it was hard to see the Gorillas. They typically only came out after a rain and the run allowed them to stay far back from park guests. I saw a glimpse of the Gorillas and that was it. I've since seen enclosures in both Philadelphia and NY that give you great views behind plexi glass. You cannot begin to imagine how amazing it was to turn the corner of the trail and come up to the Gorilla viewing area and see these amazing creatures just there going about their daily routine. I was so excited. I kept taking photo after photo and if I didn't know better I'd say a couple of them where posing. The only other time an animal has totally stunned me was the first time I saw a bald eagle in person. The Gorillas were magnificent. Another true highlight of the trip for me. On to Everest.

Now hey I don't think Bill adequately shared all the pertinent facts about the first Everest ride. Little back story, I'm afraid of heights, let me clarify, it's not heights I'm afraid of, it is the sudden stop at the end of a fall from a high altitude that frightens me. As we headed to Asia all I see is Everest. It's really big. You hear people screaming. The drop looks steep when you are looking up at it. Now I'm a coaster enthusiast. I have been on many and I love them. I just don't like being high up in the air. So the que line really distracted me... for a moment. Now we come out of the que line and it's time to board the train. I'm really struggling now. I'm not wanting to be that high up in the air. I'm sweating. I'm really not happy at all. It's the fear of the unknown. Unfortunately you only get that experience once. It's why I ride roller coasters. I really want to be scared. As we begin the journey in the front car no less (I always opt for the front car) I'm really freaking out. But once the train is in motion you are stuck. I don't like not having a say in which way I go so you can imagine how intense this is for me. First third of the coaster not horrible at all, but I know what's coming. We hit the climb hill, up we go 112ft. I'm really not happy. We reach the summit and the train releases for stage two of the journey. We stop at the break in the tracks, what a lovely view, NOT!! Now we are moving backwards, not a problem, the dark doesn't bother me because at this point I have no point of reference about height so I'm fine. We roll up the incline for the animated Yeti. Bill says, "Don't look at that, check out the track you will see it flip!" He is all excited about the damn track flipping. Being a first timer I didn't know what was next, of course when I listened to Bill and looked at the track flipping and seeing daylight I knew exactly what was next and I was not even remotely happy. I'm a man so of course if I'm going to die I'm going to do it with style. ARMS UP!! As seen in the picture I was as uncomfortable as a person can be just before the end occurs. Then they drop us. We hit the bottom of the hill and I was thinking that wasn't so bad. It's not as steep as it seems. Here we go up again. UMMMM. Where are we going? Isn't this ride over? Nope! Why are we going back into the mountainnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!! The drop into the dark literally scared me to death, not once but twice. My favorite part of the ride. As we are on our way out of the mountain to get away from the YETIIIIIII!!! Yup we just passed him. Now I know he isn't moving, I know he isn't real. But I must admit it really looked like that hand was moving. You could almost hear the SWIPE!! Like in a comic book. As we pulled into the station I realized I survived and agreed to make a return trip. It's a great coaster. My first experience on it was amazing. I know you can't tell but I have a huge grin on my face as I type this. What an amazing adventure.

We took a stroll down the Maharajah Trail. A fruit bat that was awake during the day and had a wing span of nearly 5 ft. I thought that was cool, but not nearly as hot as the tigers we saw. Such amazing creatures. My only disappointment here was the amount of time they sleep. Holy 18 hours a day, get up and get a job you lazy bums. As we walked through the aviary there was a large bird that resembled a peacock, not sure if it was a peacock. I said to Bill, "Watch where you are going." He looked at me like I had six heads and then he looked down as he almost tripped over this bird. No it was not moving, not threatened in the least. I think that is because he knew he could take Bill.

Now as those of you have read in earlier posts, I'm a nut about photo ops with the characters. So after we rode Dinosaur I see PLUTO and Goofy together. Now here is a perfect win for me. My girlfriend really wanted a pict with me and Goofy. The day before at Storybook Circus there was a wait for Goofy so it was not to be. Fast forward a day and here are PLUTO and Goofy together. Now not only can I get the Goofy photo but there is PLUTO!!! Here is where it gets funny. Bill didn't wait in line as he called home while I was in line. He had a perfect vantage point to take the photo when I got up to my Dogs!! After what felt like an eternity I'm next. I walk up to Goofy and give him a hug and I get a high five. Then there is PLUTO. I get my hug (you didn't think I wasn't gonna get another hug, did ya?) It was pretty easy to tell who I really wanted my picture with, PLUTO started to give me grief about my Mickey Ears. I said to PLUTO I have my Pluto ears back in the room. I was giddy to say the least. So as we go to pose I was already close to PLUTO but Goofy was kinda feeling left out. If I didn't know better Goofy was also a bit jealous about the LOVE PLUTO was getting. There are photos of Goofy looking at me interacting with PLUTO with that body language as if to say, UMM I'm here too. As you saw in the photo he really didn't want to be in the photo. PLUTO got another hug on the way out and Goofy just shook my hand. Putting to rest once and for all the argument of who is Top Dog, naturally it is PLUTO!!! (PLUTO in all caps emphasizes his position of importance, HA HA)

Before we left I really wanted to do, It's Tough to be a Bug. Bill has done it before and was willing to play along. It was something I wanted to do in 1998 but it was brand new and you couldn't get near the theater. It was cool to finally see the Tree of Life up close. The show overall was pretty standard. I liked the effects. The sting kind of stung a little, but that is the point (see what I did there?) The best was yet to come. SPOILER ALERT *** if you don't know how Bug ends don't read on.

For those of you who stayed with me, I'm assuming you know the conclusion. So as we are told to stay in our seats while all the bugs exit first the ripple effect on the seat occurs. Makes it feel like there was something under you. I don't know if Bill forgot that part of if it was new for him. But did he ever get a surprise. Now I don't like bugs, we covered that in the first paragraph. So I'm not crazy about what I just felt, but as I look at Bill I noticed the look of distress in his eyes. He yelped(yes I said Yelped) and was looking for higher ground. I could not stop laughing. Now I know it's not cool to make fun of your friends in their moment of despair. However, this was pay back for Everest.

We proceeded to FOTLK which I liked more than Bill acknowledged. It wasn't Fantasmic, but it was enjoyable. One thing Bill left out was one of the most important parts of our trip. In all my travels I have never been in a southerly climate during winter months. This trip was a first for me and the weather was beyond perfect. When we left DAK we had some time before our ADR @ Portabello's. We headed back to the resort to do something I was very excited about (get your minds out of the gutter). When we arrived back at PC we headed to the room(yes I'm doing this on purpose). We changed and headed for the pool. It was early February and I was outside in a swimming pool. Never in my life would I have ever imagined I'd be outside swimming in February. Keep in mind back home it was 18 degrees.

Bill has already described what Downtown was like. World of Disney was just a zoo. It's a shame that these young ladies conducted themselves like they did. They did a great disservice to themselves and the country they represent. Maybe it's me being a bit old fashioned. But as a Dad of two girls it saddened me. When you are in MK you see all the little princesses coming from Bippty Boppity Boutique and you know in a short time they could turn into what we saw. There were also a few girls from the Cheerleading Championships on the bus to Downtown that were quite a bit disrespectful. There were a couple of older women on the bus with us who thought that the girls were not conducting themselves properly. Rather then be respectful these girls continued to act out and were laughing and making fun of the older women. I get kids will be kids but respect to your elders should still remain the call of the day. Whether I agreed with the older women was not the point(I did not), I just wished the girls had responded better.

Now not to be Debbie Downer. Downtown was a lot of fun. I loved the store where you could make your own t-shirt and the art they had was amazing, some totally awesome lithograph posters. My favorite part of Downtown had to be Goofy's Glaciers. How is that for irony considering what happened during the photo op earlier? They had the best confections and the best slushies I'd ever had, even better than the wine slushies at the State Fair (NYS fair that is). So much so I made a return trip to Downtown solo the next day. That will be a story for tomorrow. Sadly though as we returned to the room we realized that it was almost time to GTFO. One day left and was it going to be one hell of a day. Wait until you hear what we did...

ginadee · Mar 26, 2013

FOTLK is my absolute favorite of all!

Dads 2 Boys · Apr 1, 2013

DAY 6
FOUR PARKS, ONE WORLD
When we got a special offer code for airfare back in late October, our travel times had to be adjusted but it also allowed us to add another day to our trip. Since we had an “extra” day, I mentioned to Steve what he thought about doing all 4 parks in one day and not surprisingly he was all for it so we made our ADRs to where we thought we would be. As you will find out, everything worked out to perfection and provided lots of great memories.

Upon receiving the bonus fastpasses on check-in night due to the mess up, I told Steve we should save them for this day to help us get on the rides we wanted. Between the two we got for each of us and the MK fastpasses we received on Sunday when we had to walk off of TTA, we both had 3 each and it ended up working out to have a great day getting on at least 2 rides in each park which was the goal. We wanted a pic of the two of us in front of each park icon as our own personal “passport” photos as well.

Our plan for the day was AK-DHS-EPCOT-MK.

We got up early for our breakfast reservation and as we left, the GTFO (get the F out) package was on our door already…..UGH. We were dreading seeing it later that night so seeing it bright and early sucked but oh well….on with the day.
The reason we were beginning the day @ AK is Steve’s love for Rainforest Cafes in general. He has been to them all over from Seattle to Florida so we figured have breakfast there @ 8:30 and be in the park by 9:15 which is exactly what happened.

After Monday’s day in AK, Steve wanted only to do Everest (which was ok with me) so after breakfast we headed directly to EE. I figured we could get 2-3 rides on before the wait time got too high and we’d have to move on to DHS. It’s exactly what transpired as we did Everest 3x and had some more fun with the ride photos. The first one, I convinced Steve to take his phone out and pretend to be on it while I pretend to text. The funny thing was he had such a death grip on his phone that his knuckles were white and threatened bodily harm on me if he dropped it. (BTW check out the miserable girl in the row behind us.......)

The 2nd pic we decided to pull out a park map but that wasn’t even the most unusual part of the ride. When we got to the point where the track has been “ripped apart”, I noticed all the hair ties that were scattered about and then realized we haven’t move in a little bit. Steve looked over and said (in a mildly terrified voice)” we’ve been sitting here for much longer than usual huh?” I said…”oh yeah” and while I laughed…………..Steve……………not so much. We had to be stationary for a good 2-3 minutes but for Steve it felt like 2-3 hours. LOL Then we hear the “psssssssss” noise and away we went.

We made our third trip and the ride picture cast mbr asked Steve “now what did you do” but I’ll let him elaborate.

The forecast for the day was for cloudiness all day but apparently my Mom overruled Mother Nature because by the time we exited AK, the clouds were going away pretty quickly and I was without my sunglasses (which ended up being a good thing). My eyes are pretty sensitive when it’s really bright out so we were going to back to the resort to get them, but as we waited for the Pop bus, the DHS bus came first so I said let’s go there now so off to DHS.

We knew by the My Disney Experience app that DHS was already really crowded so we knew there would be only 2 rides tops but we had the special fastpasses so no worries. He chose RnR so it was off to that first….thank goodness we did have the FP b/c it was 10:45ish and the wait was already 70 minutes. When we got to the CM to take the FP, she took Steves’s FP and mine was still in my pocket and she never asked and I didn’t even think twice about it b/c she ushered us into the recording room quickly.
Thepark was mobbed by the time we got off with 80 minute waits for RnR and ToT and Star Tours was 50 minutes. Since I still had my special FP, I told Steve to take it and do Star Tours one more time which he happily accepted and I was more than happy to get him one more time on ST2.0. I called my wife while he took his last tour and here is where I realized that we had no choice but to return to the resort to get my sunglasses b/c I started to get a headache. (see the pic of us in front of the Hat with me squinting)

We got the back to Pop Century and decided to have lunch there as well…..perfect timing and a good way to take a small break on our “quest”. We both had the Reuben Flatbread which may very well be my favorite CS meal on all property. We ate outside away from the “Fifteens” and it was nice and quiet. He talked to his gf (while she was on lunch from work) and I ran up to get my sunglasses….AHHHHH. I grabbed a couple of pics on the way back to the bus stop.

We got used to this last sight this day........next up, the conclusion.

fractal · Apr 2, 2013

How did I miss this TR?

WDW mancation - brilliant!

Britt · Apr 2, 2013

LOVE the trip report!!!!!

Dads 2 Boys · Apr 2, 2013

fractal said:
How did I miss this TR?

WDW mancation - brilliant!

Not sure how you missed it but welcome....unfortunately we are almost at the end. Almost as sad as actually leaving.

Thanks about the name.....my youngest son asked me when I talked to him from DHS "how's the mancation going"?

Dads 2 Boys · Apr 2, 2013

Britt said:
LOVE the trip report!!!!!

Thanks very much.

GoalieGirl16 · Apr 2, 2013

This might be my all time favorite trip report. Ever.

I am getting married at the World in August. My best friends and my sisters will all be there. If we have half as much fun as you two I will consider it a win.

Dads 2 Boys · Apr 2, 2013

After lunch is was time to hit Epcot…….

We hopped the bus to Epcot for stop number three on our journey!! It was only around 1:30 at this point so we were way ahead of schedule which was a huge surprise to us so we knew we could take a little slower when we arrived to Epcot and perhaps get 3 rides while there.

When we were discussing what rides to do the night before, we knew we could use one of our FP here but with the crowds as large as they were, it was going to be TT or Soarin’ but definitely not both and Steve chose Test Track. When we arrived we got to soak it all in one more time and both said how much it’s going to suck to leave……around the 25th time of the 100x we said it during the day. We walked over to TT with the Jammitors going again which was a nice bonus.

About to “hit the wall”.

After TT, we decided one more trip to Mars was in order so over to M:S Green. I was psyched to hit this up again as it is a favorite of mine. The wait time for Orange was 45 mins but green was all of 10 minutes so that was awesome.

Being that we were still ahead of time, we slowly took our time on the way out, savoring the smells and sounds and as we’re walking past SSE, there was no one in line!!! We looked at each other and shrugged and then walked right on for one more trip. Nice bonus if I do say so myself!!!

Here is our “passport” photo on the way out.

He didn’t ride the monorail when he went in ’99 and so getting another monorail ride for Steve was also another bonus. We took the Monorail to the TTC and instead of transferring over to the MK line, I suggested we take the Ferry to MK and as usual he was all in. It’s been a while since I was on the Ferry and forgot just how nice it is and the views are spectacular.

We got off the Ferry, looked up at the train station and high fived. We did it!!! To be honest, it was easier than I thought it would be and a lot less stressful than either of us thought. Funny thing as a way to end the trip was we were going to MK during “true love week” for the Limited Time Magic and it was a running joke with everyone we knew. We walked in and for me it was a perfect way to bookend the trip…..starting in MK and ending in MK. We arrived around 4:30-5:00 so we had a couple of hours before dinner.

We had that MK fastpass in hand so we knew we would use that for Space but we went over to get another one to have 2 trips that night. We went over to go on TTA and here is where we had a pretty cool memory. One of the things I really enjoy about TTA is how relaxing it can be to just sit back and check out the sights of Tomorrowland and the sounds, etc… and as I mentioned before, Steve didn’t know anything about TTA and didn’t want to do it when we discussed it prior to going but after being on it Sunday he really enjoyed it. Well, we got on facing each other, sat back, feet up and absorbed everything and when we got back around there was no line so we asked the CM if we could stay on and he said no problem so we didn’t even move and took another tour around Tomorrowland. Talk about care free and no worries!!!!! Hakuna Matata right???

We decided to use one of the FPs for Space and for the first time ever, I was on Space when we stopped on the lift hill. We sat for a couple of minutes and it was actually kind of cool…lol

Time for dinner…..we made ADRs for The Plaza more b/c of the area and to be able to watch Wishes while at dinner but the view was better than the meal. It wasn’t bad but certainly nothing special…..especially when dessert is way better than the meal but we were in MK still so it wasn’t all bad.

After dinner we decided to take a tour around MK and stop for a few rides. Pirates was the first stop and Haunted was the 2nd. We really wanted to get on BTMRR but the wait times were just way too high as MK was crazy……Thunder never dropped below 50 mins the entire time we were in MK. We walked thru the rest of Fantasyland (except the new part) to make our way to Space for the final ride of the trip. For Steve it was the perfect ending…..he wanted so badly to get on that ride and we were able to get on Space 5x total. After Space, we very slowly made our way to the exit and by very slowly, I mean…VERY SLOWLY.

We got out towards the exit and I definitely took one last look. We talked about how great everything was and he was very excited to start planning his own trip. I got a few pictures of the Train Station in the “lovely” colors….ha ha, see what I did there.

We continued to talk about how perfect everything was. With everything that happened over the past year, this was a much needed trip and to say I was very happy to have been able to do this with my best friend and brother would be an incredible understatement. People can say and think what they want as I’m sure we looked like the big gay couple but whatever……we had a great of a time as we could have hoped. The weather was amazing (thank Mom) and all our plans worked out to perfection…….how often can that be said when going to WDW.

We left early the next morning via DME to a sad trip back to reality. Since Steve is better with words I will let him finish as I think he will more eloquently provide a better summary of this amazing trip.

Thanks kids for reading…….I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much I did writing it and re-living it and thanks to my beautiful wife for the best birthday/Christmas present ever.

Mista C · Apr 3, 2013

What an awesome report... I have enjoyed reading this over the past several weeks!

Lucyred · Apr 3, 2013

Very cool trip!

Ellen Ripley · Apr 3, 2013

amazing!

Stephen Rock · Apr 5, 2013

**Sigh**

Deep Breath

I'm not going to lie I've been dreading sitting down to write this the final installment on a GRAND Adventure. I just don't want it to end. But with all good stories there has to be a finish. Procrastinating aside I have been given a great opportunity to put the cherry on top of what has affectionately been called the Mancation 2013 - Bill and Steve's Excellent Adventure. In past installments I have refrained from rehashing what Bill has already shared, this time I'm going to rehash. Stay with me though I hope to make it worth your time.

As you all know today's task was Four Parks in one day. The start of the morning was perfectly planned and flawlessly executed. Rainforest Cafe at DAK was the scene of breakfast. I am a Rainforest Groupie. It's the one chain restaurant I love. I've never seen breakfast at the Rainforest so when I discovered that the Rainforest @ DAK did breakfast I could not resist. Now I'm not a planner by any means but 6 months ahead of time I knew what I was having for breakfast on Day 6. Tonga Toast and it did not disappoint. Service was acceptable, a little beneath my standards for a Rainforest but acceptable. As is the case with any trip to the Rainforest a required stop at the Gift Shop was made. For those of you who have been to the Rainforest you know that as you pass the host/hostess station there is a sign that reads, "Your adventure begins here..." How appropriate is that for this day. It truly was an adventure. With breakfast out of the way it was time to head into DAK.

Let the games begin. WE had one objective in DAK and that was EE. Not once. Not twice. Yes Guys and Dolls, THREE Times. As we make our way through the que to the CM who directs traffic at the load we are looking to be put in line for front car. Now I'm not bragging but, Bill and I must have been Disney Royalty. Why you say? Well as we approach the cast member she was about to say how many and looked up at the two of us and said, How..(pause) over there (pointing to the standby for the front car). Bill looked at me and said she must have remembered us. Each of the three times we rode EE this same thing happened. Now could it have been the big 6'1" guy with Mickey Ears on that was just so out of place it was hard to forget him? Sure. But in my mind I like to think it was that we were the two Kings of Disney.

Now before I go on I have to share with you all as I'm writing this I am listening to the Four Parks, One World CD. Yes I'm over the edge. I digress. What is really interesting as well is that by this time in our trip I had the load on rides down to a science. Ears off, folded, into the mesh bag compartment, lap bar down. It was impressive. We had decided that today was going to be fun picture day on rides with photo ops. So we knew we were going to pull the park map trick, just not on the first time on EE. So we go for the cell phones. Now I'm not afraid to say that I was not happy about this. At one point I said to Bill, "If I drop it you are buying me a new cell phone!" The ride hadn't even started and I had the bowling ball grip on the phone. I was terrified I was going to drop it. I'm so that guy with the butter fingers. Now we get all the way to the top of EE and we take the wonderful picture facing DHS. OK great time to go backwards. Nothing. Look at all the hair ties up here. Yeah that's nice, let's go backwards. NOthing. "Bill this is a bit unusual."
"Yup, sure is" says Bill.
"We've been sitting here a while" I said.
"Yup, we sure have" says Bill. Now I don't care what he says he was not any happier than I was at that moment. Insert mental image of us having to walk down off from EE. Then a sound I never thought I would be so happy to hear. The hiss of the brakes to release us to go backwards. WWWWOOOOHOOOOOO!!!! We roll up the incline preparing to be dropped down the mountain. Pose! Me pretending to talk on the phone, Bill texting. Hold it, hold it. Here we go. Don't drop the phone dummy. DONT DROP THE PHONE!! Picture taken now two hands pressing the phone into my chest. I swear I was trying to turn it into a pacemaker. As we pull into the station I still have my phone. Thank Mickey. Now let's go get the picture. A really nice gal at the photo pass counter asks us, " Is that you, on the phones?" Yup that's us. Nice picture she says. Now on to trip number 2.

Park map, check. Two idiots who are planning the silliest picture of the day, check. I have to tell you we had been talking about this for months. Bill heard tell of someone else doing this. So we said if they can, so can we. The trick here is to pull the park map out and unfold it just before the drop. Then once open hold it and I would point at a spot on the map, as though we were Louis and Clark looking for a way out of the mountain. Hold the pose, HOLD IT, HOOOOOLLLLLDDDDD IIIITTTT!!!! Yes we did and it was perfect. What happened next was really a day maker. As we get off the train the first CM there looks and says, "Guys awesome picture!" We saw a couple of cast members talking about us and the pose. Time to get the picture. We go to the counter and as luck would have it the same CM that gave us the first picture is taking care of us again. She of course remembered us and said, that is an awesome picture. It was great that the CMs were having as much fun seeing what we were doing as we did doing it. Time for the third and final ride of EE. Bill and I were so ecstatic over actually pulling off the park map trick that everything else today was gravy. We looked like two kids who just pulled off the crime of the century and the CMs really cemented our accomplishment.

We snaked our way through the que to get to the CM Director and she says, "There." Pointing us to the first car stand by line. We truly were Disney Royalty. We had no idea what was going to be next. Honestly it was lame we did the "DX" salute for the camera. It was just fun. After the ride we head to the photo counter. Bill wanted to shop so I went to get the photo added to our card. As luck would have it I was helped by the same cast member a third time. She looked up and greeted me. She recognized me, it's the EARS. She said to me, "What did you guys do this time?" It made me feel wonderful. I've said it before during this TR, the CMs really enhanced the trip. I wish I could thank them personally for everything they did. Even today two months later there are some Bill and I still refer to by name. If you know a CM or you interact with one, please tell them Bill and Steve said thank you with heartfelt appreciation. Next stop is my name sake, "Rock".

As I have started to amass an appreciation for all things Disney I have also started my own lingo. I like one word titles. Rock, Space, Thunder, Everest just to name a few. Our second stop of the day was DHS. Here is where we had to make some decisions. What are we going to ride. Rock and Tours. In true fashion neither disappointed. We were doing great on time. The sun was really beginning to bother Bill's eyes and we still had to figure out lunch, so we agreed the next stop would be Pop Century for sunglasses and lunch.

One of Bill's favorite food items at WDW is the the flat bread Reuben and the food court at PC did not disappoint. It was the one place we never thought to eat at for any meal. What was the icing on the cake about this meal was it presented a break from everything. Honestly it lengthened the day by giving us a nice breather. You would think after 5 days together, with no break from each other that we would either A. have nothing left to talk about or B. would want some space. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have fallen into the trap of becoming a Disney junkie so most of our conversations centered around Disney. I'm very fond of saying this to Bill and I will share with all of you, Bill and I are very lucky to have the friendship that we do. This trip really brought that to light. Oddly enough sitting outside in the Florida Sun eating lunch on our last day of the Mancation I realized I was going to miss the day in and day out conversation and comraderie. Next stop was Epcot.

Upon arriving at Epcot it was really beginning to sink in for me that this was all coming to an end. But we weren't through yet. First things first let's go for a spin on Test Track and when we were done with that it was time to say good bye to Gary Sinise and one of the worst haircuts ever and we blasted off for Mars on Mission Space. Our time at Epcot was not going to be complete unless we did one of my favorite rides in WDW, Spaceship. I'm not really sure why but this ride just captivates me. The technology is so simple, yet so eloquently utilized to make an amazing spectacle. The infinity mirrors at the end of the ride just blow my mind. The next time you go on this ride think about how high up you are at the apex of the ride. It was now time to say good bye to Epcot and on to the final stop of the day, MK.

As we exited the ferry and headed towards the train station we had the HIGH FIVE moment. WE DID IT!! With time to spare. Having reached our goal now it was time to coast and that is just what we did. Bill kept saying to me just soak it all in. Remember as much as you can about what you are seeing. Sights, Sounds, Smells. Best advice I have ever been given. To this day I can see things like I was there. We often joke about being in Mouse Gears in Epcot. I'm over on the left side of the store looking at the T-shirts, where are you. That's when I get the text that Bill is up front by the kitchen items. Orlando, we have a problem. We are here and you are there.

530 came way to fast and after one of the coolest experiences in the park, TTA, it was time to hit the final ride. Our adventure would end with the ride I was most excited to be on, Space. We got stuck on the climb hill and on the last drop the car jerked so violently it took my breath away. It was like a kidney punch. It was extremely uncomfortable and the first sign that things were winding down. Dinner at the Plaza was lack luster compared to everywhere else we ate. Bill was running on fumes. We decided it was done. We were not going to stay for Wishes and Memories so as to beat the crowds. We returned to the room where Bill began packing and I headed out for one last spin around Downtown. I fell in love with Goofy's Glaciers Slushies. I spent a few hours wandering around Downtown. There is a story here but I am sworn to secrecy. Bill doesn't even know this story. Maybe someday I'll share. If you ever run into me ask me and I'll fill in the missing moments. For now I'll just say what happened in Downtown will stay in Downtown. I boarded the bus for PC realizing the trip was now over and I was happily sad.

There are many other things I could add and I'm sure some would love to read them and others of you have long since passed the point of glazed over eyes. I'd like to take a quick moment to say some thank yous. First a HUGE thank you to my best friend, my brother and my Disney partner in crime. What an absolutely amazing and MOUSETASTIC trip we had. For how many years have we been talking about an amusement park trip? So many. This is the one we pull off. Thank you for EVERYTHING. Thank you to ALL the CMs from PC to MK to EPCOT to DHS to DAK. You are all the most amazingly wonderful people on Earth. How fitting you are all at the Most Wonderful Place on Earth. Thank you Mom, I know you were looking down on us. The weather was absolutely perfect. You were with us every step of the way, every ride, every show and every meal. We miss you and LOVE you. Thank you Meagan for letting me steal Bill for 6 days. Thank you M for looking after my kids while I was away. Most of all I'd like to thank ALL of you who took some time out of your day to share a little bit of the MAGIC Bill and I experienced. I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as Bill and I enjoyed writing it.

I'd like to leave you with one image. If you ever see a 6'1" guy wearing Mickey ears with a Plush Goofy sticking out of his backpack it's probably me, stop and say Hi. May the MAGIC find you wherever your travels take you, may the MAGIC carry you to your happy place when you are sad and may the MAGIC always be in your HEART!!

Stephen Rock · Apr 5, 2013

GoalieGirl16 said:
This might be my all time favorite trip report. Ever.

I am getting married at the World in August. My best friends and my sisters will all be there. If we have half as much fun as you two I will consider it a win.

First let me say Congratulations on your pending nuptials!! You are going to be in WDW world so you will definitely have as much fun as we did!!!

ginadee · Apr 5, 2013

We DEFINATELY enjoyed reading it as much as you enjoyed writing it. I felt like I was right there with you. My boyfriend and I are going in dec. and until then Im trying to convert him. Hes not a believer in the magic like I am. Ive been reading him your TR so he sees Im not the only one.

Dads 2 Boys · Apr 5, 2013

ginadee said:
We DEFINATELY enjoyed reading it as much as you enjoyed writing it. I felt like I was right there with you. My boyfriend and I are going in dec. and until then Im trying to convert him. Hes not a believer in the magic like I am. Ive been reading him your TR so he sees Im not the only one.

Have him check out the pictures....especially of the two grown men acting like juveniles the whole time. LOL

PrincessFigment · Apr 5, 2013

What a great trip report!! It is so great to see two friends/brothers having a such a good time. My sister and I (the two of us are in our Avatar) are the same way in Disney and are both trying to convert our husbands - they aren't quite as gung ho as we are. We will be back again in July for our brother's wedding and can't wait. Thanks for bringing the magic to those of us who are still months away!

Stephen Rock · Apr 5, 2013

ginadee said:
We DEFINATELY enjoyed reading it as much as you enjoyed writing it. I felt like I was right there with you. My boyfriend and I are going in dec. and until then Im trying to convert him. Hes not a believer in the magic like I am. Ive been reading him your TR so he sees Im not the only one.

Glad to be of assistance. You are definitely not alone!! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Stephen Rock · Apr 5, 2013

PrincessFigment said:
What a great trip report!! It is so great to see two friends/brothers having a such a good time. My sister and I (the two of us are in our Avatar) are the same way in Disney and are both trying to convert our husbands - they aren't quite as gung ho as we are. We will be back again in July for our brother's wedding and can't wait. Thanks for bringing the magic to those of us who are still months away!

Happy to share in the fun. It truly is an amazing place. I wish I could be there more often. It's totally that one particular harbor!!

Mancation 2013 (dubbed by my 12 yr old son)

Well-Known Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

Member

Member

Well-Known Member

Well-Known Member

New Member

Member

Member