Trip Report Rise of the Popcorn Bucket

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

slipperalwaysfits said:
Please give my prayers to R for his job and school. What an awful situation to be in! I'm glad R recovered but what an awful bug to have, it sounds like it could have been the virus.

I am looking forward to seeing J on your next trip and how brave he is with the hill on Pirates!

Thank you! It is a very unnerving time. I'm really thinking it could have been. This was January so it was before the big outbreak here so I never gave it a thought back then.

I'm anxious to see if he goes on!! I couldn't believe he did this time!!

MickeyCB said:
Thank you for the information. I have had times where we have brought home snack credit (snacks). I have also had times where they were used up. They are great for food and wine at Epcot I've learned. I think I will take pen to paper and try to get a rough idea on what we might be ordering, etc. to try to get an apples to apples (or Mickey waffle to Mickey waffle) comparison!

And thanks so much for the great trip report, it was so much fun to follow along!

I've don't think I've ever used them all up. Even on that trip with my niece after using all those snacks at the Halloween party there were still a handful left at the end. Trying to figure it out is probably your best option. Some things work for some but not others!

I can't believe it's taken me this long to do this TR!! There's not much more left so hopefully I can wrap it up this week--there's a part of me that is sad about that though.

Piglet_the_brave · Apr 26, 2020

Sorry to hear R was feeling so awful and you got to spend so little time at Riverside. Really hope you get to go back there soon.

It looked like you got a lovely cuddle from J on Pirates when he got scared.

We’re another family who are fans of TiW. I’ve priced it out a few times versus the dining plan and it always works out better for us.

I don’t know if you know this, but Bob Jackson has been doing some Facebook live streams of his show. We watched last Sunday and were dancing around our living room. I think he’s got another one tonight.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

Our flight was leaving at 3:20 that afternoon. Since the TE was coming at 12 we decided that we wouldn't go to a park this day. But, it's kind of hard to sit still in Disney & we would have a few hours that morning so we wanted to do something. The night before E asked me if I wanted to go to Epcot. J really likes Soarin so we could go on that, get something to eat & leave. She figured that the transportation would be quick since we could take the Skyliner. I agreed but we all know I'm afraid of heights so I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a knot in my stomach at that point. The night before E told J that if he got up the next morning on time & didn't play around we would have time to go to Epcot. He was excited.

We weren't sure what time the Skyliner started running so I took a stroll down to see if it was operating yet. R was really feeling lousy & didn't want to come with us. He said he would rather rest for a few more hours so it was just "The Same Old" crew headed to Epcot!!

I took a few fact pics on my way.

Yep--it was running!! :coldfeet:

I went back to the room to let the crew know that it was open & we headed out. As we were walking along E & I were talking and all of a sudden we heard J talking out loud to himself. He was being totally serious--like he was the adult in the group & was trying to analyze how this was going to work out: "Oh boy. I don't know how this is going to go. We're going on the Skyliner & Aunt Patti is afraid of heights." E & I were cracking up. It was so funny!! I don't know where this kid comes up with this stuff!! :hilarious:

Please, not while I'm on it!!

He looks very serious here. Maybe he was still pondering on how I was going to fare?

I tried to distract myself by taking a selfie. Mine are usually lousy so after my attempt here E took a few.

As you can see J's still doing his thing for the camera!!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

Piglet_the_brave said:
Sorry to hear R was feeling so awful and you got to spend so little time at Riverside. Really hope you get to go back there soon.

It looked like you got a lovely cuddle from J on Pirates when he got scared.

We’re another family who are fans of TiW. I’ve priced it out a few times versus the dining plan and it always works out better for us.

I don’t know if you know this, but Bob Jackson has been doing some Facebook live streams of his show. We watched last Sunday and were dancing around our living room. I think he’s got another one tonight.

Thanks--I can't wait to go back there!! I did feel bad that he was so sick.

He was holding on to me for dear life!!

I wish I would have got that sooner. It really is worth it for us. My understanding is that the expiration date is going to be extended for that like it is for the AP's.

I did know that!! R & I watched last week but it was after the fact b/c I was still working when it was on. I am hoping to be able to watch it live tonight!!

It's a lot of fun seeing him!! I was clapping along quite a bit!!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

We hopped off & did our transfer. J led the way.

We were getting close(thank goodness!)

I think some Windex is in order!!

Sadly there was no time to visit SSE that day.

We went through the AP entrance where there was no line. We also didn't bring bags, the stroller or the popcorn bucket :cautious:

so getting through security was a breeze.

We stopped so we could take the traditional picture to send to our BIL.

They were holding everyone around Canada. J was getting bored so E gave him her phone to play a game. Of course he had to take his usual seat. Maybe I can understand it this time since the stroller wasn't around but all the other times......

The CM's let us in about 8:50 & we headed straight to Soarin.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

It was a nice, sunny day. It was a bit chilly(it was around 50 degrees)but to us northerners that is great for January!!

J was leading the way to Soarin.

We made it there in pretty good time.

I thought this would look good as a portrait!

I didn't think this one turned out too bad.

Love that smell!!

J's comment: "The Eiffel Tower is very crooked" :hilarious:

We were off the ride at 9:24. We were glad we accomplished the main thing we went there to do. Now it was time to eat!!

lindawdw · Apr 26, 2020

It's too bad that R was feeling so lousy on this trip. I hope he's able to get tested for the virus to see if he has the antibodies which would indicate if he had it! I'm glad that you decided to go to Epcot on your last morning to do Soarin instead of hanging at the resort to wait for the ME bus. It's so cute how J sits on the ground when he has to wait around for something.

He really does know how to occupy himself. I'm sad that your TR is coming to an end not knowing when we'll have another one. Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. Looking forward to hearing where you ate breakfast!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

At least the walls were decorated to break up the monotony!!

Unlike these!!

We checked wait times for the heck of it. SSE was the only thing doable for us but we didn't want to walk all the way to the front of the park through the maze.

We split up here. E was going to Starbucks & I was going to get food. Surprisingly J wanted to go with E & not with me. I guess he's wise enough to know there was nowhere in WS for him to get jelly beans!!

It was a peaceful, pretty walk.

@lindawdw Les Halles was my destination!!

It wasn't crowed at all which was nice.

I was getting us the Croissant Jambon Fromage. I debated getting one for R since he really likes them but I figured it wouldn't be that good by the time we got back & with the way he was feeling he may not have wanted it anyway.

Rista1313 · Apr 26, 2020

riverside said:
It's funny you say that b/c he thinks he may have & I think he might be right. He took an awful turn for the worse that night. His breathing/snoring kept me up for quite awhile. We didn't have a thermometer but while we were at Muddy Rivers he all of a sudden started burning up. As you'll see our time there was short-lived. What really makes him think he had it is for a few weeks after that he was having a hard time breathing. He would walk up a flight of steps & by the time he got to the top he was light headed & totally out of breath. He kept telling me that he must really be out of shape b/c he was so out of breath. That part I didn't buy b/c overall he's in pretty good shape & not really overweight. I guess we'll never know for sure but I wouldn't be surprised in the least if he did.

In December, my Mother in Law had the same symptoms. I'm also pretty sure she had it too.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

lindawdw said:
It's too bad that R was feeling so lousy on this trip. I hope he's able to get tested for the virus to see if he has the antibodies which would indicate if he had it! I'm glad that you decided to go to Epcot on your last morning to do Soarin instead of hanging at the resort to wait for the ME bus. It's so cute how J sits on the ground when he has to wait around for something. He really does know how to occupy himself. I'm sad that your TR is coming to an end not knowing when we'll have another one. Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. Looking forward to hearing where you ate breakfast!

I would be curious to find out if he really did have it! I felt kind of rushed going just b/c I get nervous about being back on time but it's better than just hanging out at the resort. A few years ago I kind of got stuck at AK & ended up missing me TE!! I guess that's why I get so nervous!! In a way I think I'm jealous that he can just plop up & down off the ground so easily. If I tried it I don't know that I could get back up!! The feeling of not knowing when I'm going back is a bummer for sure.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

Rista1313 said:
In December, my Mother in Law had the same symptoms. I'm also pretty sure she had it too.

That's interesting. So far, I don't know anyone that has had it. But hearing things like this makes me think that more have had it than we know. I know you can't believe everything you read/hear but I've heard that(which I don't understand b/c it's a respiratory disease) in some people it presents itself as diarrhea/abdominal pain. Early February I came down with that. I kid you not, I can't tell you when the last time was that I was that sick. I haven't had the flu in years & I don't know what this was but it really knocked me on my butt. I couldn't eat for days & just when I thought I was safe....wrong. The stomach pains were unreal also. If it's true that it can present itself that way I wouldn't be surprised if I had it too.

How is she doing now? Did she get treatment for it?

Rista1313 · Apr 26, 2020

riverside said:
That's interesting. So far, I don't know anyone that has had it. But hearing things like this makes me think that more have had it than we know. I know you can't believe everything you read/hear but I've heard that(which I don't understand b/c it's a respiratory disease) in some people it presents itself as diarrhea/abdominal pain. Early February I came down with that. I kid you not, I can't tell you when the last time was that I was that sick. I haven't had the flu in years & I don't know what this was but it really knocked me on my butt. I couldn't eat for days & just when I thought I was safe....wrong. The stomach pains were unreal also. If it's true that it can present itself that way I wouldn't be surprised if I had it too.

How is she doing now? Did she get treatment for it?

She did not get treatment for it at the time.... it actually has taken her a long time to recover, but she's doing good now. The shortness of breath she was telling me about when she walked from her car to her condo (less than 50 feet) is what was really scary! She said she would have to get in the condo and sit down right away. She said the fevers would get worse at night. She's stubborn, so I didn't know she had it until it was almost over. She did finally go to the doctor just before xmas. Actually now that I say that, it was between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I can't remember what meds the doctor gave her at the time.... and there was certainly no mention of the virus way back then. The symptoms match so exact though, that I really believe that's what she had. She was lucky, because she's 72 and she didn't end up in the hospital.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

I was thinking of getting a treat & acting like it was for me but meanwhile I really had J in mind. I decided I should hold off & wait until we got back to the resort.

I found a table right outside Les Halles & we ate there. I screwed up though. I somehow thought I was getting a sandwich for each of us but E was getting J & herself one to split at Starbucks. I was only supposed to get one at Les Halles for them to split. Long story short we ended up throwing out one of these b/c there was too much food. I guess I should have taken it back to R b/c there was a microwave in the room so he could have heated it up.

Unfortunately, it was time for us to head back to AoA. We saw a PP photographer & I said "The Same Old Crew" needed to get a picture--sorry R :cautious:

It was so nice out that day & I was bummed we were leaving so soon but thankful that we got to do what we did!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

Rista1313 said:
She did not get treatment for it at the time.... it actually has taken her a long time to recover, but she's doing good now. The shortness of breath she was telling me about when she walked from her car to her condo (less than 50 feet) is what was really scary! She said she would have to get in the condo and sit down right away. She said the fevers would get worse at night. She's stubborn, so I didn't know she had it until it was almost over. She did finally go to the doctor just before xmas. Actually now that I say that, it was between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I can't remember what meds the doctor gave her at the time.... and there was certainly no mention of the virus way back then. The symptoms match so exact though, that I really believe that's what she had. She was lucky, because she's 72 and she didn't end up in the hospital.

Their symptoms definitely do match. R said the scariest part was the shortness of breath. He kept saying he was out of shape but I really don't see that being the case. He runs around all the time with the kids at recess so to have an issue walking up a flight of stairs is bothersome. I remember by the end of the day he was totally wiped out. I know R's doctor prescribed him a z pak. He said it didn't kick in as fast as it normally does but either it eventually did or the virus just ran its course. I'm glad she was strong enough to fight it off & didn't end up in the hospital. Prayers for her continued health!!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

As we headed for the Skyliner we saw an old friend but didn't have time to get a picture with him! It was 10:15 & we still had to get back & check our luggage in so we didn't want to take any chances.

Our ride back(partially). J wanted a Star Wars bucket but E said no b/c she didn't want to wait for one due to the time.

J had adopted a new saying over the course of the trip(I know it came from R regarding something he was telling him about golf). It was "Coming in hot!" So as our gondola was approaching a station that's what he would say--like 5X!!

Overall I stayed calm & we didn't get stopped but coming into the station made me a little nervous. I felt like we were going to crash.

In no time at all we were switching to the other line.

And we were back at AoA!

I thought their reflections in this picture were pretty cool!!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

clarkchristoph said:
Wow, love the photos!) You are so happy there.

Thanks!! Yes I am. Not knowing when my return will be is a bummer.

Songbird76 · Apr 26, 2020

riverside said:
@Tuvalu not at all!! I appreciate you chiming in!!

Since we purchased it in November I knew I was keeping track of the savings in my last TR. I went back to it & found this excerpt:

Since this is my last receipt for the trip I figured I'd fill you in on what our TIW savings vs AP savings were. So, if we would have used our AP discount we would have saved $117.33 on qualifying purchases. With TIW we saved $307.75. Throw in the $150.00 fee & that brings our savings to $157.75. To me it was a winner!! And we still have it for another year!! We will more than get our monies worth out of it!! We should have got this a long time ago!!

For this trip we used it at 50's, The River Roost & Liberty Tree Tavern. We saved 67.22 with TiW. With the AP we would have saved 24.81 on qualifying purchases(can't use the AP discount on alcohol or at The River Roost). I think TiW is worth it. The DDP is a tough one for me. I used to get it all the time years ago. I liked the feeling of everything being paid for ahead of time. But I'm one of those ones, "I'm not going to waste a snack credit on a bottle of water." The next thing you know the trip is ending & I have a ton of credits left. Then I would end up wasting them on junk to bring home b/c I had already "paid for it." Although, R became a fan when they added alcohol to it. But for me that was a problem. Even if I didn't feel like having a drink I would get one b/c I knew that I had already "paid for it." Now that I'm thinking of it I believe I did a comparison in one of my older TR's between paying out of pocket & being on the DDP. I think it was my 2nd one. If I remember right I would have come out ahead not using it. Let me dig around a little & see if I can find it.

We have used DDP the last 2 times we went because it was included in the deal we get from Europe, though we upgraded from quick service to standard dining package. I like not having to worry about paying out of pocket, in case my credit card doesn't work, etc, BUT there are some disadvantages. Only certain things are included, like you get an entree, a dessert, and a drink, but sometimes I'd rather have an appetizer, or I'm not even hungry enough to eat dessert, but you feel like if you don't take it, you've wasted money. And I'm not a huge drinker...I ordered a LOT more drinks than normal in 2019 because it was included on the DDP, but I didn't like any of them! Where I DO feel like we came out ahead is in the number of character meals we did....those are always more expensive, so if you use the table service credits for those meals, it's not as bad. That being said, if we didn't get it with the package, I wouldn't pay for the dining plan. It's SOOO much food. We wouldn't need to go to nearly that many table service restaurants...we could mostly get by on snacks. And thanks to my husband's dole whip float addiction and my son living off the giant Joffreys donuts, we used all our snack credits last time, but we had something like 32 quick service credits left over. We used all our TS credits, but not many QS credits because we just weren't hungry and we only needed to eat one meal per day pretty much. I think for us, since we can't go any time other than July/August (School gets out mid-late July and goes back late August to early September, and it's illegal for kids to miss school unless they are sick), we just don't need that much food. Perhaps if we were going when it's colder and you need more, it would be worth it. But personally, if I'm spending that much on Disney food, I'd rather get to decide what I'm buying, not be stuck with what comes with the use of a credit. There WERE a few places where there were specialty items for DDP users...1900 Park Fare had special lemonades that you could only get if you were on the dining plan, and I think there was one other place that did something like that. But it's probably not worth the dining plan just so you can get Watermelon Lemonade at one restaurant.

If you are going to do 2 table service meals per day, I'd schedule them pretty far apart, like breakfast and dinner. It's a LOT of food.

I hope that helps.

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

This was my second trip riding the Skyliner & I'm happy I lived to tell about it!! I must say I was quite relieved to be back on ground. As we were walking back to the room J kept running ahead then would jump out at us pretending he was Darth Vader. I guess he must have enjoyed the meet & greet a few days before.

And just when you think you've seen it all.......really, what is wrong with people?? :hungover:

Back at the room we got our suitcases. E made me take ALL the popcorn buckets home!! While we were gone R had slept a bit more & after he got ready he had went to the food court to get some breakfast.

I wanted to get a picture of J with his matching hat & suitcase. No shenanigans from him this time with the picture!!

The gentleman taking our luggage was really nice & funny. Unfortunately I didn't write down what he said.

Doesn't R look like he's in the Twilight Zone?

We had promised J that he could go to the arcade at some point during the trip. It was now or never!!

E can't stand the arcade(neither can I--it gives me a headache) so she went to the gift shop to look around. She came back with a Minnie Van for J! Or as he would call it--The Spot Car!!

Even though he wasn't feeling good R had to get in a few games.

The gentleman there had been playing & still had credits left but was done. He asked J if he wanted to use the rest of his credits. That was very nice of him!!

riverside · Apr 26, 2020

MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH

I had enough of a headache from the arcade & wanted to go outside to the warmth knowing that I would be in 20some degrees later that day. I thought J would enjoy checking out the resort b/c of all the characters. R & E had never stayed there before so it was new for them also. So far the only section the 3 of them had seen was The Cars section where we stayed.
It was nice b/c the resort was pretty empty. It was around 11:30 so I'm sure most people were probably at the parks.

Yay--he smiled nice for a picture!!

And he was having fun checking out the different sections.

Ariel is my favorite princess!!

Songbird76 · Apr 26, 2020

riverside said:
That's interesting. So far, I don't know anyone that has had it. But hearing things like this makes me think that more have had it than we know. I know you can't believe everything you read/hear but I've heard that(which I don't understand b/c it's a respiratory disease) in some people it presents itself as diarrhea/abdominal pain. Early February I came down with that. I kid you not, I can't tell you when the last time was that I was that sick. I haven't had the flu in years & I don't know what this was but it really knocked me on my butt. I couldn't eat for days & just when I thought I was safe....wrong. The stomach pains were unreal also. If it's true that it can present itself that way I wouldn't be surprised if I had it too.

How is she doing now? Did she get treatment for it?

I hadn't heard about it presenting as stomach issues, but there was a news story here a couple of days ago that it started here long before they had the first confirmed cases. The first positive test was February 15th here, but there was a woman who was in the hospital on Feb 21st who said she had been coughing for WEEKS. So she had to have had it before Feb 15th, and there's the incubation period to consider, so taking that all into account, it had to have been here by at LEAST the end of January.

I was thinking about that, and it makes more sense if it was there earlier. With as many people as travel around Christmas, how likely is it that it didn't make its way out of China before February, when it apparently started there in October? Would it really have taken nearly 6 months to spread? I think the only reason they didn't have any confirmed cases until February is because they weren't testing for it. It never occurred to anyone that it was the same thing. Italy is also investigating because they saw a rise in their ICU patients in Lombardy with pneumonia and flu like symptoms, some resulting in death, already in December. And I know I had several coworkers whose entire families had Pneumonia in December or January. I had never heard of pneumonia spreading from person to person...I had always thought of it as a result of some other illness that got worse and turned INTO Pneumonia. My BIL was in the hospital with Pneumonia in January and February, just before all the Corona stuff. He doesn't think he had Covid, because he thinks it would have been worse....he wasn't in the ICU, but he's in an extremely high risk group having had a kidney transplant. But he was in and out of the hospital and they couldn't figure out what was wrong with him, which would be consistent with a new illness. His kidney function also took a nosedive which is why he was eventually admitted to the hospital, before they diagnosed him with Pneumonia, and even after several rounds of really strong antibiotics, it didn't respond, which it wouldn't if it was viral. I'm thinking it started a long time ago and we just were slow to realize it because it looked so much like standard cold/flu in most people.

Trip Report Rise of the Popcorn Bucket

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