Day 8 (June 10)
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With nothing really planned for today we decided to sleep in a bit so we didn't get up until 8:00 AM. We got ready to face the day and headed to the Boardwalk for some breakfast at the bakery. Since my wife has gotten into autographs this trip I suggested we head to MGM so we could go to the Lilo & Stitch Meet & Greet. With that decided we walked to the Dolphin (just missed the boat at the Boardwalk) and caught up with the MGM boat.
We entered the park and ran into the Green Army Men from Toy Story. A quick picture and autograph and we were on our way. With some time to spare we headed for The Great Movie Ride. There was a 45 minute wait so we decided not to do it so my wife and I checked out the shops on our way to the meet and greet.
We were the second people in line as we waited. First thing that we decided needed to be done better was that the very end of the queue for the Animation Tour was part of the queue for the meet and greet. This caused a bit of confusion until a Cast Member came out and started sorting out the lines. When 11:15 rolled around out came Lilo...umm, where's Stitch? "Stitch took his Star Cruiser for a spin and will be out later" we were told. Now I knew this to be a lie since:
1) If I remember correctly Stitch no longer has a working Star Cruiser (I guess he could have built one).
2) Stitch should be exiled to Earth therefore why is he out in a Star Cruiser anyway?
I didn't want to make a scene so I kept these observations to myself.
Second thing that needed to be done better - at a Lilo & Stitch Meet & Greet make sure both characters are there (or at least let us know that we might only get one of them). Needless to say there where a lot of upset people (us included). I felt bad for Lilo since it seemed no one really wanted to meet her
. I did want to meet Lilo but I also wanted to see Stitch. I got the autograph for my wife and she took my picture with Lilo (I usually get my picture with the girls and she gets everyone else - I'm getting to meet a lot of Princesses this way
) and we asked when Stitch would arrive and we were told in about a half hour. We went to the exit side of the queue and decided to wait for Stitch. The line kept growing and when people got close enough they kept asking "Hey, where's Stitch?" We filled them in on the half hour info and told the cover up story that the cast member had told us with a straight face. After about 20 minutes we went to the back of the line hoping the timing would be right. As we got within viewing distance of the characters again out came Stitch. A cheer went up from the crowd. Again, I couldn't help but feel bad for Lilo (especially after all she's been through). Now I don't have a problem with people and kids interacting with the characters but some of the people were taking a lot of time with the characters. I think Lilo was actually getting a little impatient since she saw the problem that was brewing. As we were nearing the front of the line the announcement was made "5 more minutes until Lilo & Stitch go on a break". Now people were getting nervous as most of us that had been there from the start and got to see just Lilo were in line to see Stitch now. And still some of the people were taking there time with:
1) Cast Member takes family picture
2) Dad takes kids picture
3) Mom wants dad with characters
4) Wait can we get one more of just Mom with the characters?
5) OK, let's go...kids want to hug Lilo and Stitch again.
AHHHHH! Please get a move on it. The cast members did their best trying to move people along but some of them were very persistent (more on this later). Finally, we got to the front of the line, got Stitch's autograph (told Lilo we already had hers to speed things along) and let the Disney photographer snap a shot for us to buy later. We decided not to use our camera for any of the shots just to keep the line moving.
With that over we weren't sure what to do so I suggested The Muppet Movie. We left the Animation Courtyard and walked into another meet and greet. We went into autograph targetting mode:
1) Pinocchio - got him already, next.
2) Eeyore - got him already, next.
3) Timon - autograph needed! Target locked!
After Timon we also got Hercules, Alice in Wonderland, and Cinderalla. We got on line for the Evil Queen from Snow White (who was also with Cruella). They said 5 more minutes and we knew it would be close. As time ran out we knew we would not make the cut but no big deal. Then the Cast Member (who was handling both the Evil Queen/Cruella line and the Cinderella line) came over and noticed that two families were standing side by side. She asked who was next. After they agreed that the family on the left was next she told them they would be the last group before the characters went in and that everyone else could come back in about 30 minutes to see them out again. At this point we got out of line. The family went up and the CM went over and finished up with Cinderella when she got back the next family was over with the Evil Queen and Cruella (who looked a bit perplexed but acted as Disney characters always do with guests) and the family after that was pushing to get in too (this was the family that had been behind us). The CM was not pleased. She politely but sternly told everyone that the characters were leaving NOW and that they would have to come back but the people kept trying to get their pictures. She finally got through the crowd and took the characters away. I thought they were going to have to call in the Green Army Men to handle the situation
. Once again I was amazed at how the CM's can deal with the crowds and not kill someone or even insult them.
We headed over to the Muppet Movie but by this time we were hot and tired and decided to just go back to the hotel. As a side note, Pal Mickey started telling us new Muppet based jokes while we were in this area of the park. We took a turn by the Sci-Fi Dine-In and I noticed that there was going to be a Monsters Inc. Meet and Greet. I knew we wanted to go back but I pointed it out to my wife and she wanted to stay. We only had a 15 minute wait until it started and we would be second in line.
As we waited the line got longer and longer. Then they let us into the official queue and we waited for the Monsters Inc. door to open. We all assumed it would be Mike and Sulley but when the door opened there was Mike all alone. No big deal as Mike would do just fine for me. As the first family moved to go into the loading bay area where the pictures are taken Sulley jumped out from the side for a good "scare" everyone laughed and was really happy to see both of them. The CM informed us that he would be happy to take family pictures with our cameras but that Mike and Sulley would not be signing autographs since they hate to do paper work. While an autograph would have been nice I must say that the meet and greet went a lot faster than the other ones. The CM took a good picture with our camera so we opted not to buy the one the Disney photographer took. A little more shopping and we were off to the room. We got back and rested a little and then we headed out to dinner (which was good since I was starving due to a lack of lunch). We ate at O'Hana for the first time ever and my parents, my wife, and myself would like to personally thank everyone on this message board that has recommended this restaurant since that is what made me strongly suggest we eat there this trip. This was one of the most enjoyable meals we have had this trip and it was quite a good value for the money. My wife and father both got the snowball but I am not a big fan of coconut so I went with the Hawaiin shaved iced. I found the ice to be delicious and a lot more than I could eat (even with my wife's help). I didn't realize how big the bucket was until we got half way through it and I realized I would burst if I ate anymore.
We took the motor launch over to MK and got some quick autographs from Suzy, Perla, Tweedle Dee, and Tweedle Dum. When asked what should we do now I gave my stock answer (The Haunted Mansion) so we headed to Liberty Square and walked right on (Pal Mickey is still a bit scared of ghosts). With just a little time left until closing we headed to BTMRR which had about a 10 minute wait. We got off and realized we only had 3 minutes until park closing so we only had one option - get back on BTMRR. We walked right on it again and when we got off the park's official hours were over and E-Ride Night had started so we couldn't get on to anything else. We took the motor launch back to the Poly, got some sodas in Captain Cook's, and headed back to the hotel (we had the car with us tonight).
Tomorrow - MK in the morning and an afternoon massage.
