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
After resting for an hour and getting ready for our anniversary dinner we set out for Epcot. Unfortunately it was raining for more than just a 30 minute time period, so we were confined to wearing ponchos for the better part of the evening. Other than dinner that night our only other plan was to walk around World Showcase again. Jordan and I absolutely love walking around here.

My first stop was at La Cava del Tequila where I ordered an avocado margarita. Hearing the positive reviews of this drink intrigued me enough to try it, and well, I really like avocado. The taste was interesting and not at all what I expected. I really have no good way of describing the taste of it at all. It wasn’t sweet, the tartness came from the tequila, the saltiness from well the salt; it was just an avocado margarita. I will say that if I go back I will probably order something sweeter. I would have probably enjoyed it more if it wasn’t raining outside. I felt the need to drink it as quickly as I could to avoid acid rain.

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Our next stop was once again to Mitsukoshi. Jordan wanted to go to the sake bar before we walked around it one last time. He loves sake, which I absolutely do not understand. I don’t remember what kind he ordered but the bottle was blue on the menu. It was cool though because they gave him a cup with his name written in Japanese on it.

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He tried to write his name in Japanese himself on some bamboo paper with a brush dipped in water. Once he did it he went off to find a CM to see if he wrote his name. I told him not to because he probably accidentally wrote something offensive. He asked the CM if she could read the paper. She said, “Jorkan.” Close enough.

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Jordan purchased some Pocky to hold him over until dinner. He struck up a conversation with the CM who checked us out over a Japanese band that he really likes. He asked the CM where she was from, and she said, “Hiroshima.” The conversation got really awkward from there. What do you say to that? Sorry? Why are you here? How are the current radiation levels? It was obviously our cue to say our goodbyes.
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Show me your Pocky! BTW, if you have never had Pocky with almonds try it! It is delicious.

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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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After walking around a bit longer we arrived in France and went to watch Impressions de France. This is my favorite video of the videos around World Showcase. The scenery and overview of old villages is just beautiful.

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The video started a conversation between us about what our next steps in life will be. The uncertainty of being able to find a teaching job had really bummed me out. Before we have children Jordan and I would love to do a lot of traveling, so we decided to toy with the idea that if I don’t have a teaching job maybe we should do something crazy and leave the country for a year. Our idea grew into going to a foreign country where he could do missions work and I could teach at an international school. I know a few people who taught at international schools at one time or another, and Jordan could easily find connections through Lee University. His idea was to go to Asia; I had Europe on my mind. Jordan was absolutely ready to pack up everything we owned as soon as we got home. We discussed this all through dinner and the opportunities that this could open up to us. Plus, we would probably have some really cool stories to tell our kids someday. I know this is really off-topic to a WDW trip report, but it all ties in to the introduction of the report. Just be patient.



So back to things you care about, for our two year anniversary we decided to have dinner at Bistro de Paris. I’ve wanted to eat here for several years, but I’ve read some mixed reviews in the past that held me up. However, while planning for this trip I read a review on Tom Bricker’s (WDWFigment) website that made me set a date and time for dinner. When we arrived I requested a table by a window. We were taken upstairs and asked to wait briefly while they got our table ready.



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I know some on here have expressed concern over this restaurant now participating in the Dining Plan. I can understand the concern. When we were seated I could tell that the people who were in the restaurant at this point would probably not have been otherwise. Sorry but I don’t think that women in tank tops and shorts is exactly appropriate attire for such a signature restaurant. Still, the restaurant wasn’t very crowded, and the majority of the customers there seemed to understand what was appropriate for the restaurant. I can’t speak for the food before the switch to the dining plan, but I thought that the menu there reflected a cuisine that is attempting to remain unique.



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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Jordan ordered the Soupe de courge aux marrons et crevettes for an appetizer. That’s butternut squash soup with chestnuts and shrimp for the rest of us. The soup was absolutely wonderful with the perfect consistency. It was thick and creamy as it should be. The chestnuts added a great flavor to it as did the shrimp. I purposely did not order an appetizer because I wanted to have plenty of room for an entrée and dessert, but the soup was so good that I had to play the ‘look longingly at your food while you eat so you will offer me more’ card while he was eating. It was just that good.

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For his entrée, Jordan ordered the Homard forestière avec un oeuf poché, bouillon crémé aux truffles noires or Maine lobster with sautéed mushrooms, poached egg, and creamy black truffle bouillon. It came out not looking at all like I would have expected. Although I’m not really sure what I expected it to look like. This dish was amazing though. There was a lot of lobster in the dish. Even more so than what you can see in this picture. The flavors of the lobster and the bouillon made a perfect pairing in the dish. A small part of me was a little bit jealous that I did not order this dish for myself.



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I had my meal planned out for this dinner for awhile. I purposely had not ordered steak at any restaurant where we had been to previously because I was waiting to order one here. For my entrée, I ordered the Filet de boeuf grille forestier, purée de pomme de terre, sauce Bordelaise, which is also known as Grilled beef tenderloin with mushroom crush, mashed potatoes, and Bordelaise sauce. Not ordering a steak at any of the other restaurants was worth it because this was absolutely amazing. The cut was thick, really thick and very tender. I wasn’t even given a sharp steak knife and it cut right through. I loved the mushroom crust on it too. It was very crispy and did not overwhelm the flavor of the steak. The mashed potatoes were good and came in their own little dish, but they were really just an afterthought of the meal.



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For dessert we ordered the warm raspberry soufflé with chocolate ganache middle and raspberry sorbet. It had a note to allow twenty minutes for this dish to be served, which almost made us not order it. Our server told us that it wouldn’t take that long. It was out in 8 minutes. When the soufflé came out it looked great; it really did. However, our food was settling by then, and we were pretty full from dinner. My thought was just to take a few bites and be done. First bite – yep, it’s a soufflé that is raspberry flavored. It was good, light, and moist, but it was going to be easy to put my spoon down after a few bites. Then, I discovered the raspberries that were cooked into the soufflé. Yum! Seriously, that made the flavor ten times better when I tasted that. The raspberries tasted really sweet cooked into the soufflé. Finally, we found the chocolate ganache filling. Self-control was over at that point. The dessert was gone within a matter of seconds. So much for us only taking a few bites. It was addicting by that point. I didn’t even blink at the sorbet. Definitely ordering this again.



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popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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I am so glad that we ate dinner there. The whole experience was great for us. The wait staff took great care of us throughout the entire meal. I found the restaurant to be nicely and tastefully decorated. The atmosphere and desire for a nice, quiet meal only enhanced our overall dining experience. Jordan even said that he wouldn’t mind making this a tradition for our anniversary each year. No argument here.

After dinner we headed out of World Showcase and walked over to the Beach Club to grab a bus to DTD. We decided to end our night by going to see the late showing of the Avengers. If you haven’t seen it yet, go. We really had a great night together celebrating our anniversary and last night in WDW.

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We didn’t get back to our room until after 2:00 and had to wake up early to pack for our ME reservations. When we woke up Jordan said, “I don’t want to leave.” I asked, “Do you like it here?” He said, “I like being here with you.” Good enough for me to indicate that maybe he is getting bitten by the Disney bug. Everything went by swiftly to bring us back home. Although I would have much rather have been at WDW so I wouldn’t have to go back to the reality of having to find a job.

This all brings me to the loose end that I have to tie up. We came home on Tuesday night, and my plan was to go into work Wednesday afternoon for half a day. Wednesday morning I received a text from the woman that I work with at the school asking if I was going to be in that afternoon because the principal wanted to meet with me. I had to give myself a pep talk when I got there not to be disappointed if they didn’t offer me a history job or any job for that matter. As far as I knew there were no jobs opening up for me, so no matter what the outcome of the meeting I needed to keep my chin up. Plus, Jordan and I were really serious about moving abroad. Well, I walk into the meeting and the principal is sitting there with two of the vice principals. My nerves set in pretty hard at that point. Long story short two teachers at retirement age took part-time contracts, which created a full-time teaching position. I was offered a job teaching World History, you know, if I would take it. Umm, yes! I’m a HISTORY TEACHER! This is really a dream come true for me. Trust me, I feel incredibly blessed to have this opportunity. Jordan and I are still talking about spending time abroad but that is what summers are for.

Our trip to WDW was everything that I could have ever wanted it to be. Jordan and I had a wonderful time celebrating his graduation. Dinner at Bistro de Paris and seeing Cirque du Soleil with my parents and Jordan were among the highlights of the trip. Plus, I was able to see my niece’s first interaction with characters, which was special to me because I got to see my nephew’s first interaction as well several years back. I’m not sure when we will be back, but we are looking at going again for a brief trip in November during the weekend of the Wine & Dine Half with Jordan’s sister and her family.

Thank you everyone for reading and following along with my trip report. Now I finally get a chance to catch up on all of the trip reports on here that I have neglected to read in order to get this one finished. Until next time…
 

miriamsolana

New Member
Dear Rachel, this must have been one of the best TR I have ever read! I truly enjoyed it! Your photos are great, you have a beautiful family. Congratulations on your new job!! I'm happy for you. I"ll be waiting for your November TR!
Saludos desde México!
 

HopLow

Member
Aww, what a great ending to your trip! Congrats!!! We need more teachers like you who are actually excited to be in the classroom. And now that your job search is settled, you can make more permanent plans for the future and trips. When I finally got my first real job out of school, it was such a relief to be able to have that bit of financial security and plan for future vacations.

Your Bistro dinner looked incredible. Les Chefs used to be my family's "must do" on all trips, but in 2008, we had such a terrible meal, that we said we wouldn't go back again. Looks like maybe France has rallied and come back strong. I guess we'll have to give it another try someday...

Anyway, I totally loved the TR and you're so lucky to be going back again in a few months! My next trip is at the end of November and it just seems sooooooo far away. Thanks for sharing!!
 

PolynesianPrincess

Well-Known Member
I really could not believe that he squirted himself with a water bottle during the ride! I wish we had had a third person with us on the last one though. It was a lot of fun thinking about fun things to do on the ride.

The baby elephant was so stinkin' cute!

I was so worried that they were going to try and get me to do it too. I would have done it though! When I finally get finished with this report my first order is to go read yours. I can't wait to read about your experience with it!

I'm so slow on getting my TR posted. That and I lost my memory card with 95% of my pics on it!!! Waaahhhhh!!! :(
 

PolynesianPrincess

Well-Known Member
LOVED this TR Rachel. Hopefully one day we will be there at the same time and our paths will cross. I'd be great to be able to see in person the people who help me with my daily Disney fix!! :)

Sounds like you guys had an absolute blast. Bistro looks super yummy. I'm getting more adventurous with my eating so hopefully I'll make it there within the next couple trips or so. Victor and Julia are so precious.

And CONGRATS on the teaching position!!!! I'm super happy for you!!!
 

epcotisbest

Well-Known Member
Congratulations on the job and long, bright future for both of you. Wife and I will be celebrating 30 years this Sept. and out of those 30 years we have been to WDW 22 times. Imagine how many if we had kids!
Great trip report. Thank you for sharing. Tell your husband return visits to WDW only get better with time, so after this wonderful trip imagine how special future trips will be. Enjoy every minute together. I hope to read more trip reports.
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Awesome TR! I really love the pictures on space mountain. My fiance and I always try to plan something different - like looking at the park maps on splash mountain, talking on the cell phone, sleeping, texting, punching each other in the face...(haha ok not really but it totally looked that way in a RnRC pic) it's always fun to be silly on ride photos. I think because strangers will think its real. haha
 

Britt

Well-Known Member
What kind of camera are you using? Some of your pics are really great (I mean, they're all fun, but I really love that some have the person in focus and background blurry. I can't remember what it's called, but I only get it on my DSLR and wasn't sure about lugging it around Disney...haha)! : )
 

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member
It's a little unnerving whenever I read that someone made a restaurant reservation because of a recommendation I made. I always worry that someone will have a worse experience than me or not enjoy the particular restaurant as much as me.

Luckily, it sounds like you had an exceptional time at Bistro de Paris (despite them letting in the riff raff! ;) ). Smart move ordering the mushroom crusted tenderloin, I thought it was amazing, too. It's not all that photogenic of a cut of meat, but you can't always judge a book (or piece of meat?) by its cover. Anyway, glad to hear that you enjoyed the restaurant! Here's hoping it remains great after the refurbishment.

Congratulations on landing the teaching job, too! Best of luck with it!!!
 
that was a wonderful report! and the photos were amazing! we will be there for the first time ever in 17 days and your photos have made me even more excited. I love the interplay between you and Jordan and your competitiveness, the funny faces on SM (and his manly bodily functions!) and you are both two of the most gorgeous people I have ever seen! Stunningly beautiful, both of you! Makes looking at photos of you even better! thank you, have a wonderful life, whether in America teaching or overseas missionairing (is that a word?)
 

Disneybird

Member
Rachel, your trip report is so good. I laughed out loud at the pictures on space mountain. Sometimes I look at Jordan and think, "We let her marry him!".
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Aww, what a great ending to your trip! Congrats!!! We need more teachers like you who are actually excited to be in the classroom. And now that your job search is settled, you can make more permanent plans for the future and trips. When I finally got my first real job out of school, it was such a relief to be able to have that bit of financial security and plan for future vacations.

Your Bistro dinner looked incredible. Les Chefs used to be my family's "must do" on all trips, but in 2008, we had such a terrible meal, that we said we wouldn't go back again. Looks like maybe France has rallied and come back strong. I guess we'll have to give it another try someday...

Anyway, I totally loved the TR and you're so lucky to be going back again in a few months! My next trip is at the end of November and it just seems sooooooo far away. Thanks for sharing!!

Thank you so much! I am really excited to be in the classroom. The financial security is so nice, and yes, future trips are already circling around my head.

I really like Les Chefs. We almost ate there again this time, but I decided Bistro would be a better option. I hate that you had a terrible meal there, but Bistro was definitely worth the price as far as I'm concerned.

Dear Rachel, this must have been one of the best TR I have ever read! I truly enjoyed it! Your photos are great, you have a beautiful family. Congratulations on your new job!! I'm happy for you. I"ll be waiting for your November TR!
Saludos desde México!

Thank you so much! Those are such sweet compliments! Thank you for reading!

I'm so slow on getting my TR posted. That and I lost my memory card with 95% of my pics on it!!! Waaahhhhh!!! :(

Oh, I would cry or scream! Probably both!

LOVED this TR Rachel. Hopefully one day we will be there at the same time and our paths will cross. I'd be great to be able to see in person the people who help me with my daily Disney fix!! :)

Sounds like you guys had an absolute blast. Bistro looks super yummy. I'm getting more adventurous with my eating so hopefully I'll make it there within the next couple trips or so. Victor and Julia are so precious.

And CONGRATS on the teaching position!!!! I'm super happy for you!!!

I know. I would love to meet up sometime! It is nice to actually see people on here in person. It makes the Disney obsession seem so much more normal. Bistro was really, really good! I can't wait to eat there again someday. Continue to be adventurous with your eating. I will tell you though that the description and ingredients on the menu were much more intimidating than the actual flavors.

And thank you! I can't wait to start!

Congratulations on the job and long, bright future for both of you. Wife and I will be celebrating 30 years this Sept. and out of those 30 years we have been to WDW 22 times. Imagine how many if we had kids!
Great trip report. Thank you for sharing. Tell your husband return visits to WDW only get better with time, so after this wonderful trip imagine how special future trips will be. Enjoy every minute together. I hope to read more trip reports.

Thank you so much! Congratulations on your upcoming anniversary! I know he definitely enjoyed this trip much more than his first one, so I can't wait to see that trend continue (hopefully!). Thank you again!
 

popsicletrees

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Awesome TR! I really love the pictures on space mountain. My fiance and I always try to plan something different - like looking at the park maps on splash mountain, talking on the cell phone, sleeping, texting, punching each other in the face...(haha ok not really but it totally looked that way in a RnRC pic) it's always fun to be silly on ride photos. I think because strangers will think its real. haha

Thanks! I completely agree about being silly with on-ride photos. It was fun planning pictures too while we were in line. That RnRC picture would have had to be a keeper if that came up when we got off of the ride!

GREAT report, and congrats on getting the job!

Thanks so much!

What kind of camera are you using? Some of your pics are really great (I mean, they're all fun, but I really love that some have the person in focus and background blurry. I can't remember what it's called, but I only get it on my DSLR and wasn't sure about lugging it around Disney...haha)! : )

I am using a Nikon D5100. I really love the camera. The effect is called bokeh, and I must admit that was one of the first things that I learned how to do with my camera. I use my 50mm lens for those shots. Jordan is getting used to it as well. I do also take a p&s camera into the parks with me just to have in case we are on a ride that I want to take pictures on and not break out the dslr among other reasons.

Great TR and pictures! You guys make a great couple and look like you really enjoy each other's company.

Thank you! We really do have a lot of fun together. Having him around definitely makes trips anywhere a lot more interesting.
 

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