Mickey, Harry Potter, and Shamu Walk Into a Bar

Welcome, y’all, to my trip report. Now some of you may be disappointed in the (somewhat distasteful) name that I chose for this particular trip report, while others may be upset in the lack of actual bars in the trip report. However, you will not be disappointed in the amount of photos, fun, and new adventures that my family went on during our 10 day stay from May 5- 15. I won’t waste too much time on the introductions because I plan on getting into more detail as the report continues.

The cast again, in case you forgot, included: myself (Rachel); husband, Jordan; mom, Disneybird; pops; grandmother; sister, Amanda; brother-in-law, John; nephew, Victor; niece, Julia. Yep, that’s a big ‘ole party to travel with.

Now on with the show.

May 5, 2012

I’m including this day for one very special reason: my husband graduated from college on this day! Three years after returning to school I was very proud to watch my husband walk across the stage to receive his Bachelor’s in Bible and Theology. Many people often ask if I am older than my husband considering that I have my Master’s. He is actually three years older than me, but he lived a much cooler life than I did before he went back to school. He backpacked through Scotland, traveled the country playing music, and traveled to different parts of the world doing missions work. On the other hand, I went to school…fun.

Still, I was very proud to see him receive his diploma, and this entire trip was planned to celebrate his graduation, as well as his new position at the church where we attend. He worked very hard leading right up to graduation. Trust me, writing exegetical papers, memorizing hundreds of years of history from the Nicean Councils, and debating Calvinism vs. Arminianism made for a very exhausting last semester. So, I was excited to spend a relaxing 10 days with a stress free husband.

We were hoping to have an additional reason to celebrate while we were in WDW, as well. Last July I received my Masters of Arts in Teaching. I am certified to teach History 7-12, with an add-on in Language Arts. For the past year I have worked at the high school where I did my year long internship in the testing department and as a tutor in English and U.S. History. Unfortunately, the school did not have a teaching position for me, but I was blessed to have a job regardless. Honestly, the best way to get a job in a school is to stay in the school. Rumors started circulating about three months ago that a position would be opening in the Social Studies Department. The department rallied behind me to be the person to fill the position in case it came open. I even had several meetings with members of the administration to discuss job opportunities. However, as it got closer and closer to our trip it seemed less and less likely that there would be a position open. The week before we left for vacation two different people on two different occasions approached me and suggested that I start looking at other schools for jobs. They were both looking out for my best interests and wanted to make sure that I could find employment. While I appreciated it talk about a devastating blow. On top of it all this came during my busiest week of the year, the week of End of Course testing (I was able to take off the entire next week because my job is based on hours, which I built up enough of during the week of testing.). So, I was so ready to just get out of town and away from the craziness for awhile. I planned on using these 10 days not having to or wanting to think about jobs.

The day and a half leading up to Jordan’s graduation were very hectic in our little household as Jordan’s mother and brother came down from Maryland to stay with us. Packing and resting beforehand became a little rushed. Still, Saturday morning I was ready to pop out of bed and get going with everything. Fortunately, Jordan’s graduation was early in the morning because we had a very long drive ahead of us.

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Blurry but this was the best I could do.

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All smiles afterwards

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Once graduation was over, my parents met us over at our place for lunch before hitting the road. We hit the road around 1:30 for a long journey ahead. The ride down was uneventful, and traffic wasn’t bad at all. We stayed off-site for the night at a Comfort Suites. My mom was nice enough to get Jordan and me our own room for the night. Once we got there we were so excited to be starting our vacation that we literally jumped up and down on the bed.
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
There was a really beautiful and bright bird hiding in the bird area over there.
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Trying to get out of the exit of the trek was a nightmare. There is some Bollywood dance party that they have set up at a corner near the exit to the jungle trek and the entrance to Kali River Rapids. We were pretty much at a standstill just trying to find a way through the crowd. It is a narrow passage through there as it is, and this was not making it any easier to navigate. Honestly, I think it was horrible placement, and as someone who has a low heat tolerance being stuck in a crowded and hot area for something that I had no interest in, it was instant dislike. We avoided that area for the rest of the day.
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After dealing with the awful crowd Jordan and I decided to become honorary bugs before heading out of Animal Kingdom. I was excited for him to see the Tree of Life up-close, but unfortunately we only saw a condensed version compared to what you could see of the Tree of Life before. Safety first, folks.

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Honorary Blurry Bugs
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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We arrived back at the resort to find that our room was located in the same building as my parents’, but we were on a different floor on the complete opposite side of the building. Our room was beautiful (I didn’t get pictures!). Our bathroom was redecorated, but we still had the curtain dividing the sinks from the room with the shower and toilet in a separate room.

Initially we had reservations at Citricos for that night. I went downstairs to get our luggage from my parents, and my mom followed me back up to my room. She told me that they would not be going to dinner because my grandmother fell. What?! She was sitting in a chair at the table in the room. A chair of the leg was propped on the base of the table, which my grandmother did not realize. At some point she was either trying to get up or leaned back and the chair toppled over. She ended up hitting her head. My mom called the front desk and paramedics were called. She ended up being ok, just a little stunned I guess. It was still a scary moment to have while on vacation. The old grey mare just ain’t what she used to be. I got on the phone with WDW Dining to cancel our reservation. They canceled without any problem and our cancelation fee was waived since it was not 24 hours in advance. Whoever I spoke with on the phone was very kind.

After a few hours (and a much needed nap; it had been quite the day) we decided to take a boat and head out to DTD.
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Rainforest Café?

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LeCellier.Lover

Well-Known Member
Guess what.... I WENT ON THE FORBIDDEN JOURNEY AND LOOVVED IT!! :D :)
I'm still loving your TR! I'm going to be writing my own TR, but I still have to get pictures from other cameras, etc. So now it's nice to read this and reminisce the good times I just had as well!! ;) Haha!
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
It was a really beautiful night. The weather was perfect. The boat ride was very calming and just perfect for this night.

This was Jordan’s first time over to DTD. He had been to West Side during our last trip, but he fell in love when he saw all of the legos creations.

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For dinner we ate at Pollo Campero. I ordered the citrus grilled chicken with campero beans and sangria. Honestly, the chicken was just ok, and the camper beans were not that great. It was definitely not what I was expecting. The chicken had a decent flavor, and it was pretty tender. However, considering what we paid for, it really wasn’t worth it to eat there. The campero beans was really the only side that I cared to try, and it wasn’t anything special. Sangria – delicious.

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Jordan ordered a burger from Fresh A-Peel. Also, he ordered a bananas fosters milkshake. The reason why he ordered it was because it had Bailey’s in it. He loves Bailey’s on the rocks. The milkshake was really delicious and creamy.
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HopLow

Member
I'm so enjoying your TR - you always have great ones! I love the arrangement with all of your fam - you're all together, but you can also split off and do your own thing with Jordan. I think that's the best of both worlds. And arent nieces/nephews the best? You can have fun with them, but them pass them on back to their parents when it gets to be too much! ;) I am jealous that you have a niece - I have 3 nephews and I'm getting tired of all the boy stuff. I want to buy tutus and glitter, not video games.

Anyway, keep it comin! Looking forward to the next installment!
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Guess what.... I WENT ON THE FORBIDDEN JOURNEY AND LOOVVED IT!! :D :)
I'm still loving your TR! I'm going to be writing my own TR, but I still have to get pictures from other cameras, etc. So now it's nice to read this and reminisce the good times I just had as well!! ;) Haha!

Yea! I'm so glad that you rode it and LOVED it! I can't wait to see your TR!

I'm so enjoying your TR - you always have great ones! I love the arrangement with all of your fam - you're all together, but you can also split off and do your own thing with Jordan. I think that's the best of both worlds. And arent nieces/nephews the best? You can have fun with them, but them pass them on back to their parents when it gets to be too much! ;) I am jealous that you have a niece - I have 3 nephews and I'm getting tired of all the boy stuff. I want to buy tutus and glitter, not video games.

Anyway, keep it comin! Looking forward to the next installment!

Thank you so much! It really is nice to have different people to do different things with. Jordan is a great sport about it too. I know what you mean about nieces and nephews. It is nice just to hand them back and not take too much responsibility for them. It is very different having a niece around so much. We've traded cars for coloring books and baby dolls. Plus, the personalities of the two are completely opposite!

the sangria looks really good and so does the milkshake!
what side do you normally get with the filet?

The sangria was really good as was the milkshake. I don't want to sound like a lush but it was the best part of the meal. With the filet you normally get mushroom risotto. Personally, I love it! The mashed potatoes are really good too though.
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
After dinner we wandered over to West Side to the vinylmation store.

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I know that Vinylmations get mixed reviews, but personally I love them. I get one for every trip. I have several from the Star Wars series, but I always buy one from the parks series. In a display window I saw a set-up for the Park Starz series. It was instant love! I wish that I had gotten a picture, but if you haven’t seen them they are not in the shape of Mickey but rather what they are actually depicting from the rides. Sadly, they were sold out everywhere, and the Disney store website no longer has them. From what I remember they had Abe Lincoln, the bride from the Haunted Mansion, Figment, the Yeti, and Big Al. There were others, and they were awesome.



In defeat we headed back over to DTD.



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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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While we were in DTD my parents went back to POR; we joined them later for one very important reason: to see BOB! People if you have never seen Yehaa Bob at POR, you are truly missing out. He typically plays Wednesday – Saturday nights, with two shows beginning at 9. His shows are very family friendly, and they provide great entertainment for the whole family. It really isn’t the type of show where you can be a reserved audience member who is just content on sitting back and watching the show. Audience participation is part of his whole act. This is the kind of show that you will need to remember that you will never see these people again as you are running around the run, doing the tarzan yell at the sound of a bugle, the alligator, or even the hand jive. Bob is great at remembering who you are by your geographical location, and you just can’t turn him down when he asks you to get up and dance. There is no charge other than what you order from the bar. He does accept tips and sells cds there. Just remember that Bob’s hair always looks great, and if you go, you will be amazed when you arrive at how many people you will find from your neck of the woods. It is all in good fun, and he really is a very kind person. At the end of his show you can go and talk to him. He is very gracious in letting you get pictures with him. Actually once his show was over he said, “Tennessee, come up here and get a picture with me.” He spoke to us a few minutes and even signed and gave us some of his show photos.

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LeCellier.Lover

Well-Known Member
OMG! Those pictures of your dad and husband doing different silly things during Bob's show are hilarious! :D I need to see that show next time I'm there! Haha!
 

HouCuseChickie

Well-Known Member
I couldn't believe that she fell asleep but at the same time I can knowing her. I think Jordan was actually offended! What shows have you seen in Vegas? I think "O" looks really interesting. I can't wait for the opportunity to see more.

The Le Cellier burger was really good and ginormous! The large pizza at Via Napoli easily fed five adults who take their pizza seriously. Honestly, when I saw them wheeling our dinner out I knew we were in trouble.

I'm sorry, I meant to reply sooner but it's been car drama for the last week. We've seen O and Mystere. I'm torn on which I like better. THe whole water aspect of O makes it so interesting, but I feel like Mystere is what I expect to see when I go to see Cirque. Out of all of the shows- and opinions of friends who have seen them all- those are the two that everyone seems to like the most. We were trying to decide between KA and Zumanity the last time we went...but somehow wound up going to see Penn & Teller instead...which is kind of cool b/c you can meet them both after the show. Viva Elvis, Love and Believe really don't do anything for us...but I also wouldn't turn down tickets. :D

We currently have Le Cellier lunch booked on our Epcot day, but if I'm going to eat cheese while in vacay (long story) I feel like Via Napoli might be where I really want to go. Who knows- sounds like the burger and the pizza were good. Decisions!

OK...now to catch up on my reading. :)

EDIT- OK caught up! First...jealous of your great experience at Tusker. We've only done it once I was hoping it would be more like your visit. Looking at your pics has at least helped me decide that I think we're returning to AK for our short day this trip.

Second- and more importantly...so glad to hear your grandmother is OK. That had to be soooo scary!

I also love the Vinylmations. Not sure why since I don't trade them, but there's just something about them. LOVE those lights with them! I might need some of those! I think I'm also going to need the bananas foster shake...or come up with a way to make something like that on my own. Sounds DELISH!
 

chrissyw14

Active Member
The sangria was really good as was the milkshake. I don't want to sound like a lush but it was the best part of the meal. With the filet you normally get mushroom risotto. Personally, I love it! The mashed potatoes are really good too though.

This August is my first trip that I'm 21 so I'm looking for all these delicious drinks to try! lol
I've seen a lot of different TR where people get the filet with different sides than the risotto so I'm just trying to decide what I want. Yes I am the person who likes to look at menus and make decisions before I even go to a restaurant lol.

it looks like you had soo much fun at the Yeeha Bob show! I'm thinking about going to that also!
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
OMG! Those pictures of your dad and husband doing different silly things during Bob's show are hilarious! :D I need to see that show next time I'm there! Haha!

It really is so much fun. My dad is definitely not the type of person to ever do anything like that - EVER! However, he absolutely loves Bob's show.

I'm sorry, I meant to reply sooner but it's been car drama for the last week. We've seen O and Mystere. I'm torn on which I like better. THe whole water aspect of O makes it so interesting, but I feel like Mystere is what I expect to see when I go to see Cirque. Out of all of the shows- and opinions of friends who have seen them all- those are the two that everyone seems to like the most. We were trying to decide between KA and Zumanity the last time we went...but somehow wound up going to see Penn & Teller instead...which is kind of cool b/c you can meet them both after the show. Viva Elvis, Love and Believe really don't do anything for us...but I also wouldn't turn down tickets. :D

We currently have Le Cellier lunch booked on our Epcot day, but if I'm going to eat cheese while in vacay (long story) I feel like Via Napoli might be where I really want to go. Who knows- sounds like the burger and the pizza were good. Decisions!

OK...now to catch up on my reading. :)

EDIT- OK caught up! First...jealous of your great experience at Tusker. We've only done it once I was hoping it would be more like your visit. Looking at your pics has at least helped me decide that I think we're returning to AK for our short day this trip.

Second- and more importantly...so glad to hear your grandmother is OK. That had to be soooo scary!

I also love the Vinylmations. Not sure why since I don't trade them, but there's just something about them. LOVE those lights with them! I might need some of those! I think I'm also going to need the bananas foster shake...or come up with a way to make something like that on my own. Sounds DELISH!

I think Jordan would really like O because of the water aspect. If I had the time and money to see both during one trip I absolutely would! We would actually go see Penn & Teller too if we had the chance. Viva, Elvis doesn't interest me at all neither does Believe for that matter.

Overall I like Le Cellier better, but that is only because I've been there so many times. I am looking forward to go to Via Napoli again to try more of their pizzas.

I really like the Tusker House. It is so unique. Jordan told me when we went that his goal was to try a little of everything. He took me up there with him so I could tell him what was in everything that I had already tried. Needless to say he didn't try everything. He is very picky. Still, he found more than enough to eat.

I was really worried about my grandmother. Thankfully everything was ok.

I wouldn't trade my vinylmations, but I can understand why some people would. I loved the lights too. His shake was so good. The menu there listed everything that was in it, but I cannot find one online.

This August is my first trip that I'm 21 so I'm looking for all these delicious drinks to try! lol
I've seen a lot of different TR where people get the filet with different sides than the risotto so I'm just trying to decide what I want. Yes I am the person who likes to look at menus and make decisions before I even go to a restaurant lol.

it looks like you had soo much fun at the Yeeha Bob show! I'm thinking about going to that also!

Drink lots of water! :D

I really like risotto, and I thought the risotto was the perfect complement to the filet. I look at the menus too, and then I look at them again once I get there!

Go see Bob - great free entertainment!
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
May 11, 2012
Although we had been on property for several days at this point we still had not been to DHS. Amanda and John got there early to sign Victor up for Jedi Training Academy. Once the rest of us arrived I ran over to grab fps for TSMM while my parents met up with Amanda and John. I met up with everyone else and found out that Victor’s training wasn’t until 1:50 and that everyone else was going over to Epcot for the time being. Since Jordan and I had not even set foot in DHS yet we decided to stay there.

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Our first course of action took us over to Sunset Boulevard. We got there to find that RNRC was down and the line for ToT was upwards of an hour. No thanks. We turned around and went to check out Star Tours instead.

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We rode it twice through at this point and had two completely different experiences our first two rides. During our second ride I looked over at Jordan as soon as we sat down and he had this huge smile on his face. I asked him what he was doing, and he said, “I’m trying to look photogenic so they will pick me as the Rebel spy.” Yeah, it didn’t work.
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We made our way over to the Great Movie Ride, and I recognized a board member standing at the entrance. Joanna was working that day, so I went up and introduced myself. I didn’t stay too long to speak to her since she was working, but I did at least want to say ‘hi.’

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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It was lunch time at this point, and we were really hungry. The only problem was that there really wasn’t anything at DHS that we wanted to eat. We walked practically all over the park trying to find food that looked appetizing. We didn’t know what we wanted, but we definitely weren’t finding anything worth eating. Finally we settled on ABC Commissary. I know this place gets a bad rep, but for a burger and fish and chips it wasn’t too bad.

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After lunch we ventured back over to ToT to see if the wait had gone down any. It was still posted at 60 minutes. We asked a woman coming out of the gift shop if the wait was really 60 minutes; she said it was. So, we went back to see if RnRC was any better. The wait posted was at 45 minutes, but there was no line outside of the building. We got in line and waited about 10 minutes to get through the line.

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
After our ride I called my mom to see if they were back in the park. She said that she was at Starring Rolls eating lunch with my dad. Sweet. Seriously, I wanted something sweet, especially from there. Inside we went to drool, I mean, find something to eat. Between mom, Jordan, and I, we found three things for all of us to share.

Up first was an éclair. It was delicious, the filling was creamy, and it was everything that an éclair should be. You could easily cut into it with a fork, so the pastry was nice and light. Plus, the best part for me was that the chocolate was not an overpowering flavor. It complemented the rest of the éclair like it should have. Well done, Disney. Out of the three though, it was my least favorite.

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Next up we have the fruit tart. I love fruit tarts. The filling beneath the fruit was much sweeter than what I expected, but it was delicious. You pretty much needed a steak knife to be able to eat this though. The crust was very hard. The only way that we could figure out how to eat it was to pick it up and take a bite out of it. No worry about germs here as we passed it around taking a bite.

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Now for my favorite dessert, it was a banana pudding type dessert. Phenomenal is not an adequate description for this. The dessert has several layers of cream on top, banana goodness filling, and a bottom crust that had a wonderful, wafer-like taste to it. It was one of the best things that I ate all week, if not the best. If you love bananas, especially banana pudding, this dessert will not disappoint. Forget the cupcakes, this is what I’m coming to Starring Rolls for from now on. Needless to say, I was reluctant to share this one.
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At one point I had all three of the desserts sitting in front of me. Jordan told me that this was his worst nightmare.

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Then, he turned the camera on my parents and said, “And now the happy couple. Smile!”

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After our snacks it was time to hustle over to see Victor in the Jedi Training Academy.

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The kid loves hoods.

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First off, if you have never seen this show, go see it. I’m sure it is much more adorable when your own child is in it, but it is very entertaining. Second of all, props to the people who do this for multiple shows every day. It was hot, HOT, out, and the lack of shade and hot outfits make you really appreciate what these people are doing for your child. The Jedi trainer for our show was very funny and made several remarks about the heat.

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Vader was staring down Julia at this point. She actually laughed and giggled. This girl will be an adventurous one. Vader turned and Jordan quipped, “She melted his heart.”

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Then, it was Victor’s turn to fight Vader. He was having trouble activating his light saber, and Vader took a few steps towards him. He looked ready to bolt. It was so funny, but with a little help his light saber was activated and he was ready to fight.

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
The last kid who fought was ready. He looked maybe a year older than Victor. Vader charged him and the kid held out his hand to use the force on Vader. It was just instinct. It was hilarious to watch.
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Victor said that he had a great time, and I was glad that he was able to participate.

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