Pop Century, Pachyderms and a Proposal - May 2011 Trip Report

Hello fellow Disney lovers!
After years of lurking and randomly posting here and there on these boards...I figured it was time to write a trip report. This is my second attempt at writing a TR - my first came to a stop when my computer crashed and I lost a bunch of pictures. But I vow to finish this one! (Hell, I'm only starting it 4 months late - I've had enough prep time!) I was really on the fence about writing one but it seemed Holly (Hollybelle) nudged (more like pushed) me over the edge. :lol: So here I am. And who am I?

I'm Jess.

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23 year old self proclaimed Disney expert. This is my 7th trip…about 6th since I’ve been obsessed. My first trip in 1997 – First ride was Honey I Shrunk the Audience. Absolutely terrified me. I was scarred for the rest of the trip, scared to ride almost every ride. I was scared to ride Peter Pan’s Flight…no joke. My parents are still shocked that I now adore the place. The only ride I can remember riding and not being scared of was Spaceship Earth. Therefore I felt incredibly brave for riding the slow moving journey through time and rode it many times and this ride is still my favorite ride in all of Disney. So Spaceship Earth not only signifies my bravery but now it just SCREAMS “you’re at Disney World” to me. The sight of the mural paired with that SSE smell…gives me that feeling of “yep, you’re in Disney…feel free to tear up a bit.” And I usually do.

Anyway…traveling with me on this trip is my boyfriend(?) of 3 ½ years Bill.

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25 year old medical student, avid Haunted Mansion fan and tolerater of my Disney obsession. This is Bill’s 5th trip to the World…1st being with his high school class, the subsequent 3 being with yours truly. His 1st trip – he was not impressed (clearly he hadn’t met the right girl yet). Even after his 2nd trip he was not convinced. But the 3rd trip did the trick. He is still not obsessed to the point of posting on a Disney forum but he is hooked. Just thinking about how much he brags about how clean Disney is and how good the food is and how amazing everything is just brings a tear to my eye. He bragged about it so much to his family that joining us on this trip are….

Bill’s sister Samantha and her boyfriend Anthony.

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This will be both of their 2nd trips. Both of their trips were (separately) when they were in high school or middle school. Both were coming to Disney with one thing on their minds – FOOD. We had the dining plan on our last trip (free dining pin) and we got the pin again and Bill was bragging about the fantastic food we have encountered on our previous trips. Both were excited to stuff themselves full. (spoiler alert - mission accomplished)

This trip took place from May 17th – 24th. We were on the basic dining plan. And we were staying at the gorgeous, extravagant, larger than life, everyone’s favorite resort…you know it, you love it…starts with a P….O….takes you to a place you’ve never been. Say ‘Aloha’ to….

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POP CENTURY!!! Where else? :lookaroun We are avid Pop fans because we spend little time at the resort and can’t really justify shelling out the bucks for a place to sleep and shower.

So let’s get on with the show, shall we?

Monday May 16th“Do I really have to go to work today? Don’t they know I need to prepare for Disney tomorrow?”

Early morning work meetings are like getting jammed at the end of PoTC by the treasure room – always longer than expected. After listening to my boss and clients talk about something that was not Disney and therefore not interesting…I headed home to finish packing. Bill had just finished his first round of medical school boards (tests) so he was relaxing at home…leisurely packing. We finished up and headed to his parents house who live about 30 minutes away from the airport. We had a nice dinner with his parents and other siblings celebrating Bill being done with his boards. Then after a trip to the bar to REALLY celebrate…I put myself to bed for we had to get up early for our 7:50 flight.

Tuesday May 17th“Yes I do plan to ride SSE again and again…”
The alarm at 4 came quite quickly and we were showered and ready to hit the airport. We arrived without problem and got in line for TSA. And walking to the back of the line we spotted this man in line…

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(we didn't take a pic of him - too star struck - so this is from the internet)

Yes that is hockey legend Mario Lemieux. Former player and current owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yeah…he’s kind of a big deal. So after our first (and only…unless you count Mickey Mouse…which, who am I kidding? You do.) celebrity sighting we headed through TSA. Samantha and Anthony were selected for body scans – Bill and I were not. True of our flight back to Pittsburgh as well. BUT who cares about heading back to Pittsburgh…we’re on our way to (as John would say) Walt F’in Disney World! We stopped for a delicious McDonalds breakfast before boarding our flight.

Flight was a bit bumpy – Samantha was not impressed, actually feeling rather sick from the bumps. When we landed the pilot informed us it was 70 degrees and sunny in Orlando, as well as 55 degrees and rainy in Pittsburgh. That’s what I love to hear! We got off the plane and bolted for Magical Express. This is when Anthony commented that all he saw through MCO was the back of my head as I was pretty much sprinting through the airport.

We’ve got places to go…Magical Expresses to catch. We walked through DME without problems and got the next bus that came. On the bus and off The Most Magical Place on Earth!!!!

We got to POP a little after 11 and our rooms were not ready. So after a quick change and checking our carry ons with the baggage people...we were heading out to the parks.

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plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Love the TR so far, Jess! Thanks for all the yummy food pictures :slurp::slurp:

My pleasure! There are more food pics to come. I can't help myself when it comes to Disney food. There are no calories in Disney World, right? RIGHT?! :lol:

Oh, how I love the caramel store... My friend generously donated one of her snack credits to me on our last trip because I couldn't decide on what to get in here. The chocolate covered caramel squares were GLORIOUS!!

You guys were so lucky, only waiting 20 mins for TSMM!!

I'm so enjoying the TR - your excitement is infectious!! Can't wait for more!

The caramel store is dangerous! This was not my only purchase in the store...there are a few more to come! And a few things I put on my "must do" list for my next Disney trip!

The trick to a quick wait at TSMM was right before closing. I highly recommend it!


ZOMG!!! A trip report from Jess?! Can it really be??? I'm so excited. Fabulous start, my friend, I'm loving the commentary. Of course, I'm going to take full credit for the awesomeness that is this trip report... seeing as how I *pushed* you over the edge - no looking back now. Back! Back! Over de Falls!! :lol:

See? I told ya I'd start one! Only 4 months late! HA! You are more than welcome to take credit for this TR as you had a hand in convincing me to go through with it. But I thank you for it because it's helping with the Disney blues!

Fun reading. I can't wait to read more. There is part of the title that has not come out yet.

Thank You! Oh you're right. Those pesky pachyderms. Don't worry we'll get there soon! :animwink:
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
great report so far. Its helping me count down the days until i go...92 days to go. Also the food pictures are killing me right now. I am going to eat so much when I'm there:D

YAY so glad I could help with Disney anticipation! I do the same thing - read TRs to get me exciting for upcoming trips so I'm so glad I could do the same for you! Woo I love food pics myself - there are many more on the way. You should start making a "disney Must eat" list so when you're there you can cross things off as you go along!
 

switts

Member
YAY so glad I could help with Disney anticipation! I do the same thing - read TRs to get me exciting for upcoming trips so I'm so glad I could do the same for you! Woo I love food pics myself - there are many more on the way. You should start making a "disney Must eat" list so when you're there you can cross things off as you go along!

Ha I do have that list and right now its about a mile long haha. And reading trip reports makes my work day go by alot faster especially on slow days like today. I may even have to do a trip report when I get back this time around.
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
May 18 “Whining and wine in Animal Kingdom”


Alarm 6:30am “No sleeping!”
…there is no other place in the world I can wake up that early and be excited to do so other than Disney World. Showered and down to the food court at Pop. I actually enjoy Pop’s variety of food items in the grab n go section…the hot bar, not so much. This morning breakfast consisted of splitting a raspberry cheese danish and a chocolate milk. (Sorry no pics - we had a rope drop to get to)
Then it was off to Disneys Hollywood Studios for EMH. We got there and it was packed. We tried the trick of going through the gift shops and there was even a line to get out that way. We sent Bill ahead to get Toy Story fastpasses – once the holy grail of fastpasses were in our grasp, we headed down to one of my favorite attractions – Rock n Roller Coaster!!! I love this ride – it’s such a rush. We rode twice and then Samantha wanted to hit up Tower of Terror. This ride is not for me as when I ride I have trouble finding my stomach after. Bill wanted to go ride w/them as we never ride it on our trips so what’s a girl to do? Single rider RnRC, please! I was able to practically walk on twice. Woo Hoo!

As we walked back up Sunset Blvd I wanted to duck into Villains in Vogue as I adore all things Villains. Even though the merch is very much un villain and more vinylmation and Pirates, I still like the décor.

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(my absolute fav disney character!!!)

Samantha was enamored by something in Sweet Spells which took us over to the delicious smelling part of the store.

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She decided on this…giant blue cupcake.

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And she said it was….blah. :hurl:The icing tasted like straight granulated sugar. And the cupcake itself was pretty dry. Oh well. We moseyed our way around Backlot area and streets of America…just enjoying the lack of crowds for the morning.
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I'm really not a big fan of the Streets of America (Unless it's during Christmastime - which I've never experienced firsthand :() But Samantha and Anthony wanted to see it so I didn't mind...as long as it was quick! :lol:

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Where is Padame? Is she safe? Is she alright? …it seems in your anger you killed her.
I couldn’t have, she was alive I felt it. NOOOOOO!
(oh yeah...btw, I'm a nerd)


On that note, we headed to Star Tours to see about any soft openings – no such luck. So we rode Backlot Tour with the plan of seating Samantha in first so she would get sprayed with water. Well the plan was going smooth until she saw there was water on the seat. “Do I get wet on this ride?” Um…a little. So she made Anthony switch seats with us. We told him you barely get wet but he did not believe us. But we laughed the whole time during the sequence because he pushed back into Samantha (who pushed back into us) because he was worried he was going to get soaked.

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Hilarity ensued. Now it was time for TSMM FP! We walked up to find a little girl losing her mickey waffles outside the entrance. Aww I feel bad but step aside I gots a game to win! But to no avail Bill was victorious yet again. I was getting hungry (half a danish is not much) so we stopped in Writer’s Stop for some deliciousness.

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I decided on the GIANT Mickey chocolate chip cookie and a carton of milk.

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Yum. It was bigger than expected (thats what she said) but it was quite good. It seemed my cookie started rumbling the stomachs of the rest of the party so we were off to find lunch. I had my eye on a frankfurter in pretzel roll at Min and Bill’s dockside diner. This came with a full milkshake for dessert – yes please. As well as chips for my side.
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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they are DISNEY chips - so they must be good

The hotdog in the pretzel roll - not so good. It wasn't bad but it just wasn't what I thought. The hotdog was more of a snap dog and I'm not a fan of casing on my hotdogs. Bill liked it though so he helped me along.

Bill decided on one of the most delicious (and extremely healthy) snacks in all of Disney World…the turkey leg!

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Of course I had to snag a few bites – I'm a fan. Samantha decided on a burger and Anthony went for half a chicken and ribs (those keeping track that’s now 1 full chicken for Anthony this trip so far). Chocolate cake and carrot cake were their desserts.

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plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
We waddled around DHS on our way towards the Animation Studio hoping to catch a short line for my favorite Mickey – Sorcerer Mickey!

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Unfortunately the line was too long so we headed out of the park towards greener pastures. And by greener I don’t mean better by any means I mean literally greener….

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I should start this part out by saying…I really don’t like Animal Kingdom. It’s so big and produces so much heat and provides such little shade…and wait, it’s all about animals? Yes I whine quite a lot while at this park. Originally when we were planning this trip and it was just Bill and I…we were planning on skipping this park all together. I enjoy a total of 3 attractions here and none of them close to my top favorites. Kilimanjaro Safari, Expedition Everest and Finding Nemo the Musical. So that was on our to do list for the day. We grabbed FPs for the Safari and headed over to Nemo because the next show was close to starting.

I'm a fan of this show on the basis of it's originality and catchy tunes. (the tune of "thats my dad" is often used to describe other things...like a pair of amphibian stuffed animals would be "best friend froooogs" - we're cool) I also LOVE the giant sharks and Nigel used in the show. I'm impressed by this show on every visit. Yay! And the AC in the theater helped boost my mood a bit as well. Double Yay. Now it was to backtrack to use our Safari FP. On the way we snagged Everest FP.

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“You love Ladysmith Black Mombasa.” If you get this…I love you.

We went and rode the Safari and it was one of the best safaris ever. Rhinos so close to the car…one showed just how excited he was to see me at AK - by taking a huge hose-style...relief. I believe Samantha has a picture of this but I've been asking for her pics for so long (hence the delay in the report) that I decided to forgo her pics. If she ever gets around to giving me them - i'll post them!

And both the lioness and the lion were out. Our guide said this was very rare…could have been some Disney bulls#i% but she seemed genuinely excited about it. Like kind of slowed down and ignored her "Simba One" calls because she was talking about the lions.

After the wild animals - we were waiting for our Everest FP to be valid by buying some time in the gift shop.

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Literally. Ha. No we didn’t buy these or anything here but we did have fun playing with the drums and such. Then I found something I really liked.

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If I liked this park more, I’d buy it. I'm a big fan of park specific merchandise. Then I found something I REALLY like...

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We really thought about buying some as it would probably make the day go faster but we opted out. Then we headed to Everest!
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Samantha knew nothing of this ride so as she snapped pics going up the climb we told her…uh keep that baby out!

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“Oh no…now what?”

The backwards part of this ride really makes me pretty dizzy but the big drop after more than makes up for it. Yeti in B mode but still cool. So glad Bill and I got to see him in A when it first opened a few years ago but disappointed for Samantha and Anthony. After a few standard AK shots…we headed out.

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Peace out AK! Probably won’t see you on our next trip!

We headed back to POP for a nap. Ahh it was glorious! Then we showered and headed out to find whatever park bus came first and hop on – it was EPCOT. So counting this we went to EPCOT every day except our last day. Anywho…we were in search of Kidani Village for our dinner tonight was at Sanaa. We got off our bus and a AKL bus pulled up – sweet! We checked in at Sanaa and walked out to check out the surroundings while we waited.

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Buzz buzz buzz – time to eat! I’ll be perfectly honest here…I was very skeptical about this place. The reviews were all fantastic but I’m a crazy picky eater. After obsessing over the menus and pictures of the food – I had settled on the Tandoori Chicken due to it seeming very plain and basic – right up my alley. BUT would I stick to this?
Our waitress was Kim and I gotta say – BEST waitress we had all week. Probably one of the best we’ve ever encountered in Disney. She helped explain all the items and answered any questions we had…really really awesome. She also told us that our booth was “the celebration booth” was the most popular in the place due to the hidden Mickey.

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We got a double order of the bread service so she brought out 2 plates of bread and every dip offered.

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HouCuseChickie

Well-Known Member
Loving the TR and a HUGE - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU - for posting all of this food . It's helping me remember that none of the food in my fridge is that good - meaning it's not worth cheating on the diet. :lol: I know it wasn't your thing, but I need to remember that hot dog for next time. That thing looks and sounds awesome!!! Can't wait to read more! :wave:
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I believe the cucumber and red curry were our favorites. So much so that at the end of the meal she brought us out the recipes for each one on cute AKL paper. Thanks Kim you sweetheart you just upped your tip!

Again I was very worried about this meal but this was Bill’s choice of ADR and he was really excited about it. I was set to order the Tandoori chicken (playing it safe) when Kim was going over the items and explained the beef short ribs in a cinnamon sauce…I was intrigued. I asked Kim which would she choose and she steered me towards the beef. In Kim I trust! I ordered the beef short ribs and the chicken in red curry sauce

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Bill ordered spicy chicken and shrimp in green curry sauce.

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Anthony ordered spicy chicken and chicken in red curry sauce (so we’ve got to be at about 1 ½ chickens by now)

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Samantha ordered the NY strip steak with some mango salsa on top.

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Everyone was very VERY pleased with the meal. The bread service especially was a big hit, not just the food but the experience of trying all the different things was really fun. I was very pleased with the beef ribs – so tender and delicious. Everyone raved about this meal! And again, the service was top notch! For dessert I believe as a group we ordered 2 samplers, the chocolate cake and the orange sesame cake.

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Everything was good…stand outs were the orange sesame cake and the chai cream. Chai cream = It was so freaking delicious! Possibly my favorite dessert of the whole trip. Samantha described it as “Christmas in a Cup.” Perfect description. Next time I will definitely be ordering the regular sized portion of this baby for dessert. YUM!! With full bellies we headed over to Jambo House as I was on a mission – Zebra Domes. It’s one of the magical desserts you read about on these boards as being oh so heavenly. They were right about the oreo bon bons so I went to try the domes! Exploring AKL in the process.

Gorgeous resort. A little dark but still very gorgeous. We finally found Mara and our domes were awaiting us!


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(I snagged this off the internet as my z-domes pics were lost in the great camera debacle)

The verdict? Delicious! Not as good as the oreo bon bons in my opinion but still pretty good. Bill especially enjoyed them. Mission accomplished. We then grabbed a bus for DHS as it was the next to arrive and then jumped on the bus for Pop. We got back and passed the frick out…all that eating can really tire a person out!

Overall - decent day. Strong morning as I love TSMM and RnRC - both top rides in my book. AK drags the day down a bit but Sanaa really helped make the day awesome. One of the best meals of the trip. I had to tell Bill "you were right" quite a few times over the next few days as I gushed about the beef short ribs and the chai cream.

Up Next: Disney sickness strikes again and a spin at the now signature Le Cellier.
 

switts

Member
gets better daily...the only problem is I am now starving at work and the cafe doesnt open here for another 1.5 hours. My list of foods i need to hunt down over my next 2 trips keeps getting longer and longer
 

BigRedDad

Well-Known Member
Sounds like another great day. I am sorry you do not like AK. Personally, I love it. From reading everyone's thoughts on it, people either love it or hate it. I don't think there is a middle ground.
 

plaz10

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Loving the TR and a HUGE - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU - for posting all of this food . It's helping me remember that none of the food in my fridge is that good - meaning it's not worth cheating on the diet. :lol: I know it wasn't your thing, but I need to remember that hot dog for next time. That thing looks and sounds awesome!!! Can't wait to read more! :wave:

You're so very welcome for the food pics! I know I love to see them on this forum so I'm just doin' my part! I always obsess over the food I plan to eat at Disney so I figure this helps with others research. The hot dog came with some spicy mustard, I got it on the side but Bill really enjoyed the hot dog and the mustard. I enjoyed the whole milkshake as my drink!

Great TR so far! Lovin' the food pics! :lol: :slurp:

Thanks! I liked having 2 more people on the trip than the usual so I had twice as many food pics!

Mean Girls! :sohappy: One of my favorite lines. Really enjoying your report!

that's so fetch! It's such a great movie! And it's the one thing at AK I always look for.

gets better daily...the only problem is I am now starving at work and the cafe doesnt open here for another 1.5 hours. My list of foods i need to hunt down over my next 2 trips keeps getting longer and longer

Ha sorry to get your stomach growlin'! I know the feeling. Yes I'm already starting a "must eat" list for my next trip...which isn't even planned yet! But food has become an oh so important part of our trips I feel I have to document it all!

Sounds like another great day. I am sorry you do not like AK. Personally, I love it. From reading everyone's thoughts on it, people either love it or hate it. I don't think there is a middle ground.

Yeah AK is just not my cup of tea. Perhaps I'm not an animal lover so that works against me. I'm hoping they add some new rides and drag me back in...but for now - not worth missing another ride on Soarin' or Splash Mountain! But you're right...it's a love it or hate it park. I love the atmosphere, it's gorgeous...but I can look at pics of the nice sights on here...I cant feel the adrenaline of RnRC online! Ha ha! Thanks for reading!
 

Disneyfalcon

Well-Known Member
Yay! A proposal trip report!! I love it!! My ds is right there with you at Animal Kingdom. After we ride Everest, he's ready to go. I enjoy it but we usually don't spend long there.

Your food at Sanaa does look amazing. All the food pictures are making me so hungry!!:D

Keep it coming!!
 

8laurach

New Member
Your pictures are fantastic!!!Make me hungry with an 1 1/2 to go for lunch. Can't wait to see the ring and hear about the proposal. I've been married 15 years and never get tired of seeing and hearing about other's big moment.
 

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