SK's Trip Report: September 13 - September 19

Well I am back from the World and of course wish I was still there, but what are you gonna do right???
I had alot of fun, despite some minor setbacks which I will get into later. These events did ruin some of my fun, but I was determined to pull through and try to get accomplished what I had set out to accomplish.

This trip was just my mother and myself. This was our first trip going as just the two of us and both of our 5th trip to the World. This was our first time going in September (we mostly go in late October) and our first time with free dining. I think my favorite thing about this trip was getting to experience the dining. We barely ever splurge on meals because of the cost. Prior to this trip we had only been to Biergarten, Rose and Crown, 50's Primetime, Sci-Fi Dine In, and Cinderella's Royal Table so it was absolutely awesome to experience some new places in the parks and at different resorts as well.
Which brings me to Day 1....

Sept 13 - Day One: Arrival and The Magic Kingdom

Our plane left from Detroit at 9:15 am this day and we arrived in Orlando around 11:45 or so. I was extremely surprised to find no lines at DME. We did not even have to check in like we had last year in Oct and we went straight to our bus line which was also short. We were picked up within 15 minutes and were off to POP which was thankfully the first stop. Our room was ready for us upon arrival and I had asked if we could be placed in the 50's. I guess our room was not originally in the 50's so the CM made a call and got us a room there. We were in the 80's last year and I didn't really care where we were but I was hoping to try a change of scenery in a different location. We were behind the Tramp statue on the first floor in the back overlooking the lake. I liked the location and it was relatively close to the main building. The room seemed a bit more run down then I remember it being last year but it was still fine for us as we are never there anyways.

We immediately headed to the Magic Kingdom. As always - I love the Halloween decorations. The crowds seemed light and it was pretty hot but not unbearable for a first day.

We went straight back to the Columbia Harbour House to have lunch and use our first CS credit. At this time it was about 2 pm and we were starving. Briefly watched part of the show on the castle stage on our way to eat but only stopped for a minute as our mind was on the food! I had the Shrimp Platter and chocolate cake and my mom had a chicken salad and apple crisp. They were both really good and we had our fuel for the afternoon.

 

[DisneyDreamer08]

Hey great TR so far!

Your animal pictures are gorgeous! What kind of camera do you use? That gorilla looks massive and a little scary.... like he could eat us in one gulp!

 

[DisneyGigi]

Wow, the animal pictures are wonderful! I never get good pics of them, maybe this year I will do better. :lol:
We love Coral Reef too, we go every trip.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I never noticed how much I love the buildings in Adventureland.

I know! I had the "discovery" moment a couple trips back, too. Now I walk thru Adventureland gazing up at the buildings soaking them in. I love how the architecture changes from one building to the next like you're traveling thru adventures in many worlds all blended so perfectly into one beautiful place.

I read in "Hidden Magic" that Goofy talks, although we sat there for a good while until people started acting like they wanted a picture and did not hear anything.

I've heard Goofy "talk" lots of times. I think his motion sensor is in front of him which isn't the obvious place to pass by if you're getting up next to him for a picture.

We headed into the little area off to the right of Main Street and heard the music lessons going on above. Something I had never heard about before and made a point to look for.

Where exactly is this??? I've never heard the music lessons. I'm starting a list of things I have yet to do for our next trip...

Mad Tea Party was short so we jumped on that as well. My mom would not let me spin it so we just kinda sat there and stared at each other!

I'm with Mom! I don't like spinning either. :hurl: I like to entertain myself on the teacups by using the wheel to counter any spinning during the ride. I'm always the teacup that his absolutely no movement whatsoever. Everyone else spins like mad or lets it move. I'm the square peg! :hammer:

TTA was fun as always and I thought it was really crazy to see Space Mountain with lights on and the terrible mess they have on the sides that you can see when you look down from the TTA.

Isn't it insane??? I've seen SM w/lights on a couple times but it was a very, very long time ago when I was a kid. The impression that sticks with me is how the ride structure itself was like a compacted ball of jumbled up junk sitting there in the middle of a gi-normous space. The scale difference of the ride itself to the building that houses it was memorable.

Afterwards I had read to go off to the left on the trails rather then exit the same way as everyone else. I have never been on the Discovery Island trails, didn’t even know some of them existed and was so very glad to walk through them.

I've always wanted to do the Discovery Island trails but didn't know where to find them. When we're in the parks it's like constant motion so I've never spent a lot of time looking for where to go. I'm soooo glad you said something! Adding to my list.... Thank you! LOL!

We got on Dinosaur and I kept my eyes closed the entire time. I have learned from my past mistakes. I have only seen what has happened in this ride once and once is enough for me. Ever since I have only heard what was happening. Sorry but this thing scares the crap outta me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Try it with ear plugs. When I was little loud noises really, really terrified me. Going to the races with my Grampa was pure h-e-double-hockey-sticks because of how loud the cars were going by. Even as an adult when I hear loud noises I'm startled and have to go into this conscious thought process of telling myself it's okay. The picture part on Dinosaur rattles my brain it's so loud. We take ear plugs with us and I actually enjoy the entire ride much better. I can hear the entire narrative just fine. I actually have more fun without the added stress factor of the high volume & anticipation of the earth-shattering roar. Also, afterward I don't have the ear ringing & splitting headache. Give it a shot. It may actually help.

We then headed into Camp Minnie Mickey to catch Festival of the Lion King. On our way we saw Koda and Kenai with no line and all the other characters (Mickey, Minnie, etc.) were packed lines. I think that no one knows who these two are.

If I ran into Koda & Kenai together I'd prob'ly freak out! We loooove Brother Bear! I'd so break out into the whole, "Say it with me...Kooo Duuuuh!" I love it!

The meerkats crack me up. I could watch them forever, they are so funny. I would love to know what they are thinking.

I agree! We love the show Meerkat Manor just because the narrative and editing lends so much personality to these fascinating little creatures.

We grabbed ice cream at the snack stand on our way back to get on the train for Rafiki’s Planet Watch we saw Terk. At Rafiki’s Planet Watch we met some more cool characters. Pocahontas, Rafiki, and Jiminy.

Rafiki's Planet Watch...another thing to add to our list of things we've not done before. Can you believe that??? And oooooh...to meet Jiminy would rock. Terk..eh..makes me think of the actress/comedian who did her voice which sours the entire thing for me. Maybe instead of shrugging off Terk I'll go meet her and suggest a better person for the voice.

We also saw some people working there who were feeding an injured eagle (I think it was). It was pretty amazing, I bet it feels great to have a job like that helping animals.

My youngest would absolutely loooove to see the animal care in progress. He loves animals, forever yammers about being a vet, and did a recent report on Zoologists. We definitely will be taking him back to RPW on our next trip!

Thanks for your review of the coral reef it looked really good. I noticed on these threads it doesn't get much love and usually listed as a least favorite..you back up my theory that you have to try places for your own b/c everyone has different tastes and opinions! Thank you!

I dunno. I've never eaten at Coral Reef just because I don't care for seafood but I've heard some good reviews in TR's. Some friends of ours ate there in the spring and said the steak was better than the steak they had at LeCellier. :shrug: Strange, I know! :hammer: I didn't think that was possible. Makes me wanna try it, tho! :slurp:



I'm lovin' this TR!!! The pics are awesome! Color, composition, everything! Oh! And the animal pics are great. I've stopped trying to take a lot of animal pictures at Animal Kingdom but maybe with the right camera....

 

[Shere_Khan]

Great trip report.

I especially liked the pictures you took "up close" of the Tiger and the Hippo!!

Thanks for reading - I know with all the pictures it seems long but I have such a hard time choosing which ones to post!!

Thanks for your review of the coral reef it looked really good. I noticed on these threads it doesn't get much love and usually listed as a least favorite..you back up my theory that you have to try places for your own b/c everyone has different tastes and opinions! Thank you!

Of all the restaurants I loved the theme the most for sure. It was just really cool to be there. The aquarium was beautiful. I did not get many pics though because it was fairlly dark.
I thought the food was awesome, but I love all types of fish and am not picky. If you like seafood I am sure you would like it.

Hey great TR so far!

Your animal pictures are gorgeous! What kind of camera do you use? That gorilla looks massive and a little scary.... like he could eat us in one gulp!

My husband bought me a Canon PowerShot SX110 (I believe that's the model #) for my birthday a month before the trip. I believe it was around $200-$250?? It is pretty easy to use although I have not messed with alot of the settings. One thing I do love is the vibrant color setting though, it really helps in some situations with colors.

Wow, the animal pictures are wonderful! I never get good pics of them, maybe this year I will do better. :lol:
We love Coral Reef too, we go every trip.

If we decide to do free dining next year I said I would want to try all new places, but seriously considering going there again.

I know! I had the "discovery" moment a couple trips back, too. Now I walk thru Adventureland gazing up at the buildings soaking them in. I love how the architecture changes from one building to the next like you're traveling thru adventures in many worlds all blended so perfectly into one beautiful place.

I'm gonna reply in blue for you
I never realized it before either - it really is a gorgeous place. I used to like Fantasyland and Tomorrowland better but it has taken top spot.

Where exactly is this??? I've never heard the music lessons. I'm starting a list of things I have yet to do for our next trip...

When you are walking up main street from the entrance it is on your right hand side. There is a little alcove that you can walk back into. It is something I always missed before. This year there was a kiosk in there with silhouette artists (not sure if this changes though). Walk all the way to the back and stand there for a bit and listen. There will probably be no one else back there so it will be easy to hear. Up top from one of the windows you can hear people having music lessons. We heard a tap dancing lesson and I believe there are singing as well.


I'm with Mom! I don't like spinning either. :hurl: I like to entertain myself on the teacups by using the wheel to counter any spinning during the ride. I'm always the teacup that his absolutely no movement whatsoever. Everyone else spins like mad or lets it move. I'm the square peg! :hammer:

Yes I was also kind of moving it to stop the spin. I don't really care for spinning too much, but she was like you better not touch that thing!!!!

I've always wanted to do the Discovery Island trails but didn't know where to find them. When we're in the parks it's like constant motion so I've never spent a lot of time looking for where to go. I'm soooo glad you said something! Adding to my list.... Thank you! LOL!

Yes! Do them! It is very peaceful back there and not many people even know so you can get some good shots of smaller animals.
Make sure when you leave It's Tough to Be a Bug, go down the path to your left rather then following the crowd out.

Rafiki's Planet Watch...another thing to add to our list of things we've not done before. Can you believe that??? And oooooh...to meet Jiminy would rock. Terk..eh..makes me think of the actress/comedian who did her voice which sours the entire thing for me. Maybe instead of shrugging off Terk I'll go meet her and suggest a better person for the voice.

There is not a ton of stuff to do over there, but we went over last year for the first time and saw the 3 same characters with no lines, so I wanted to go over this time and see who was there. It was the same.

I'm lovin' this TR!!! The pics are awesome! Color, composition, everything! Oh! And the animal pics are great. I've stopped trying to take a lot of animal pictures at Animal Kingdom but maybe with the right camera....

Thanks so much for reading! I replied to some of your comments in blue up there because I didn't seperate all the quotes out.

Hey since you are making a list, I have 4 lists typed out in word of all the little hidden things in the parks that I took along with me if you are interested. This trip being the 5th was meant to be a bit more relaxed and to see something things we haven't seen yet.
I read this book the Hidden Magic of WDW and I went through it before the trip and made the lists so I could be sure to look.
There is a lot of stuff and some of it I still did not find/do. But if you are interested I could email you the word document.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

^^^

I'm sending you a PM with my email address! Thanks!

:kiss:

 

[KingStefan]

Such a good TR! I can't wait for the rest. I'm so behind on my report, I'm afraid I'm going to forget too much! Keep it coming. Maybe it will encourage me to find a way to post some more a bit at a time!

 

[DisneyBunny]

Hey since you are making a list, I have 4 lists typed out in word of all the little hidden things in the parks that I took along with me if you are interested. This trip being the 5th was meant to be a bit more relaxed and to see something things we haven't seen yet.
I read this book the Hidden Magic of WDW and I went through it before the trip and made the lists so I could be sure to look.
There is a lot of stuff and some of it I still did not find/do. But if you are interested I could email you the word document.

ooh! That sounds fantastic! I'm learning a lot from your TR. I never knew Goofy talked and there were music lessons!

Could I PM you my e-mail too? :wave:

 

[Shere_Khan]

Such a good TR! I can't wait for the rest. I'm so behind on my report, I'm afraid I'm going to forget too much! Keep it coming. Maybe it will encourage me to find a way to post some more a bit at a time!

Thanks so much.
It is really time consuming so I know what you mean. Last year I only got through day 4 or 5 I think and then stopped and forgot to come back and finish. SO I am going to try hard to post each day this time.
It's nice to look back on later too.

ooh! That sounds fantastic! I'm learning a lot from your TR. I never knew Goofy talked and there were music lessons!

Could I PM you my e-mail too? :wave:

Yes of course!!!

 

[TakeMeThere81]

We headed into the little area off to the right of Main Street and heard the music lessons going on above. Something I had never heard about before and made a point to look for.

I never knew about this or Goofy! I'm going to PM you as well

We jumped on SSE with no line as a tradition. We always start here and I love the ride. I read that when you go past the cave dwellers scene you should take a flash photo of the wall to your right for a nice surprise. I did and I didn’t get the entire thing, but it’s still pretty cool!!

I'm not sure I get the "surprise". :veryconfu Can you elaborate?

I LOVE all of your pictures, especially the animals(the hippo pic-wow!!). They are just fantastic. Looking forward to the remainder of your report! :wave:

 

[Shere_Khan]

I'm not sure I get the "surprise". :veryconfu Can you elaborate?

I LOVE all of your pictures, especially the animals(the hippo pic-wow!!). They are just fantastic. Looking forward to the remainder of your report! :wave:

Well it is not really a huge surprise.
It's just that the wall to your right is completely dark and you see nothing. So when you take the flash pic it lights up all the hieroglyphics hidden on the wall that you can't see in the dark. I just thought it was neat.

Thanks for the nice comments.

Sending those emails now

 

[Shere_Khan]

Sept 15th – Day Three: Epcot & Magic Kingdom

This is where things went terribly wrong…This morning I woke up and had a TERRIBLE sore throat. My head felt like it weighed 50 pounds and it was completely stuffed up. I took my time getting up and around and we headed into Epcot.

We went right over to Sunshine Seasons and had the breakfast platter. Despite feeling terrible, I still felt somewhat hungry. We ate and the walked on to Soarin. After Soarin we jumped on Journey into Imagination and we then went to Honey I Shrunk the Audience which I have not seen since 1995 and barely remembered.
The last 3 trips I have skipped this. Thought I would hate it and didn’t want to bother taking the time to do it. I have to say it was not terrible. Although everyone looked totally 80’s which was terrible, I like the idea and loved how the theatre moves and shakes to make you really feel as if you are tiny.
When did they add Eric Idle though??? He wasn’t in this attraction when it opened was he????

After this we went over to get a FP for Test Track and went on Universe of Energy while we waited for our fast pass time. I love Ellen and I love this ride.

Rode Test Track and decided to skip Mission:SPACE because I was beginning to feel quite nauseous and terrible. We decided to take it slow and head over into the World Showcase as it was just before noon. On our way over we saw Marie. I was so glad we got to see her and the line was not bad.

We seem to always begin on the Canada side. I have never seen any of the movies at the World Showcase (besides the one after Maelstrom). This trip was dedicated to see the things we haven’t seen so we went right into Canada’s Circle Vision. I absolutely loved this. It was so beautiful. Being from Michigan and fairly close to Canada I am about to start planning a road trip across Canada!
One bad thing about the movie though…already feeling a bit nauseous, it did not help. I had to sit down immediately after near the Kidcot station. We sat there for quite a while as I was trying to calm my stomach, deal with my terrible cold, and the brutal heat. This day was not starting out well.
Took a few pics of Canada

I was finding it very hard to get from country to country in the heat with how I felt. I immediately ducked in a store in the UK as soon as we made it over. Sat in the nice comfy chairs across from the Kidcot station near the back room where characters make their appearances. Saw that a line was forming so my mom jumped in line so we could see Winnie the Pooh. They arrived and we got a pic!

Afterwards we saw Alice outside and stopped to see her.

 

[Shere_Khan]

Some of the UK:

On our way to France:

Picture across the lake:

We arrived in France and we hurried into the lobby of the movie to get some relief. I was afraid that the movie would make me sicker so we turned around and left and found a seat outside. It was at this point that I realized I am going to do one of three things:

A. PASS OUT
B. VOMIT
C. DIE

It was really bad and I did not know what to do. Most of all I did not know how I was going to get out of this park. We began to walk back, stopping frequently to sit. It was like if I exerted any energy I had this terrible dizzy sick feeling. We made it as far as UK when my mom told me to go back into the store where the big comfy chairs were and to stay there for a minute. She found a cast member, told her what was going on, and they called the paramedics. They took me out of UK behind a cast member only door and I saw the back alley of UK. It was nothing special. Saw some cast members eating lunch and even saw the same Alice I had my picture with walk out past us. The paramedics were not the sweetest people I have ever dealt with. They asked me what I was feeling, I told them, and they said what do you want us to do about it? I was a little panicked and felt really embarrassed at the same time. My mom asked them to just take my temperature, anything else I would have to go to the hospital. If I had a fever, we were leaving and not going anywhere until I was better. No fever. My mom was convinced it was just a combination of having a cold and the terrible heat. They also thought it was heat stroke. Now to the embarrassing part, they got me a wheelchair just so I could get out of the darn place. So my mom wheeled me to the front gate. It was only a little after 1, we had dinner reservations at 4:35 for Boma. I was crying because I did not want this to ruin everything. Not to mention the Halloween Party was tonight. I was so upset! We decided we would go to AKL right then and sit in the cool lobby for the next three hours and see how I felt after that.

Some pics of AKL

 

[Shere_Khan]

After sitting, right before our reservation, I felt a bit better. We decided to eat. I did not enjoy this meal at all however. Nothing much sounded good but I had some bread and a few other things to see how it went. At the end of dinner I was ok so we went over to MK for the party. On the bus ride there I got the ill feeling again. When we got off the bus I sat and my mom went to get another wheelchair. For some reason it was mainly walking where I felt so weak. When I was in the wheelchair I was doing ok but not great. I was crying on my way in the gates, my mom talked to a CM and they suggested I go over to first aid just to get checked. So we did. At least I have seen all the first aid places now! GEESH!!! I laid down in one of the beds there for a bit, cried, and decided this was not going to ruin my party. I told my mom I was ready to go and we headed outside to find it was pouring rain.
We put on our ponchos and we went to look for characters. I began to feel better but we took several stops.

Saw Tarzan, Rafiki, Jesse, and Mad Hatter and Alice

Thought this pic was neat:

Watched the parade, the headless horseman did not ride because the streets were wet. All of my pictures were crap but this one.

Watched the fireworks only got a few that were halfway decent.

 

[Shere_Khan]

We were told the Headless Horseman would ride at the last parade so we went all the way to parks entrance and waited so we could see him and then head back for the night. I really wanted to stay later but just couldn’t do it.

All in all I was pretty disappointed that we did not get a whole lot done. We did not go on one ride either. I wanted to see villains and did not know where to find them and missed that. But I am just grateful I went at all, I would have been devastated if I could not make the party.
I will say I have new respect for people in wheelchairs even though I already did respect them. It is so hard to get around that place in a wheelchair or scooter, and a lot of people are just plain rude.

Thanks for reading Day 3 – Stay tuned.

 

[DisneyBunny]

Yes of course!!!

You're awesome! :wave:

And that's AWFUL about getting sick! I've been sick there too (Strep throat), and I know how it just puts a whole damper on your trip. Here's hoping it was over fast!

 

[Heatherbell]

Wow, for being so sick you looked pretty darn good in those pics.

Sorry you were sick

 

[smk]

Sorry you got sick but it soesn't seem to have stopped you from the fun. I agree about wheelchairs, people walk in front of you and stop or just generally make it hard to navigate aroundthem. I had to use one once when I broke my ankle and couldn't walk on my cast, it was not fun but I didn't let it spoil my trip either.

 

[Shere_Khan]

Wow, for being so sick you looked pretty darn good in those pics.

Sorry you were sick

Well that makes me feel better
We made alot of stops, felt like the day went on forever in a short time.

Sorry you got sick but it soesn't seem to have stopped you from the fun. I agree about wheelchairs, people walk in front of you and stop or just generally make it hard to navigate aroundthem. I had to use one once when I broke my ankle and couldn't walk on my cast, it was not fun but I didn't let it spoil my trip either.

No we still had some fun, I was just upset that I didn't accomplish alot.
Yes the wheelchair was tough. The rest of the trip when I was walking after that I made sure to let people through and not go in front.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

:lol: Yeah, I was thinkin' you looked pretty dang good for a sick person also! LOL!

Sorry you had to get sick. I know how horrible it can be. I think it was our 2nd trip with the kids I came down with the flu on day 2. I can't imagine being sick in the heat, tho. I believe I'd give in and stay curled up in bed with the a/c on high.

Still lovin' your report! Can't wait for more!

:wave:

 

[PattyBell]

Sent you a PM...:wave: