Trip Report Spring Trip To WDW

Hello Friends,

We are about 24 hours away from flying off to be at the Most Magical Place on Earth.

This was an unplanned trip. After our last WDW trip this past December, we were planning on doing a Disney Eastern Caribbean Cruise in October, and then do our annual trip to WDW in early December. But real life (i.e. work) schedule got in the way and we had to cancel both of them. So in early January, when we realized that we had to cancel those trip, but found that we had a week of free time in April, we made our last-minute plan to go. So here we are!

Unlike our past trips, it won't be a big group going from the Chicagoland area. It will be just the two of us this time, and we are planning on a quiet, relaxing trip, mainly because we both will have some work to do during our vacation. Oh, don't get us wrong, we will still have fastpasses to go on Mine Train, Flight of Passage (twice), Slinky Dog, etc... etc. It is just that I've also planned on a couple of days with no fast passes, no reservations, and just chill out.

On this trip, we have plans to do a DVC Dining Package at The Wave (followed by drinks and desserts at Top of the World Lounge), and we also have accepted the DVC invitation to their reception to look at the Riviera Resort. So we will have at least those to do.

Donald, as always, is already set to go. He did give me a dirty look when I put him on top of the pile in my suitcase. It was him telling me that he's not going into the suitcase. He always travels in my carry-on, and he won't have it any other way.
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As always, whenever I have the chance, I'll try to report live from where ever I will be. And now, I only need to survive just one more day at work....

Zz.
 
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GJM724

GJM724

Active Member
Amos1784 said:
When we were there in March it had just begun its refurbishment, even with the fast pass we still waited 45 minutes, there was only one elevator loading. They were even making announcements basically saying if you don't have a fastpass expect an extremely long wait time. I would think they have really limited passes going out now.
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Ouch! Thanks for the info!
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
When I took that photo, and the whole time that I was there, both elevator shafts where running. However, the one on the left (with the door closing all the way) only was loading one elevator at a time. The right elevator shaft, the one that had the bummed door that didn't close all the way, were loading both elevators.

This probably contributed to the horrendous stand-by wait times.

Zz.
 
Amos1784

Amos1784

Well-Known Member
Rodj said:
I don't think so, as I was there March 31st and both sides were working the entire day, it might have just been broken down when you were there.
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Maybe it is going in and out, but it is pretty well known and listed on many websites that it is under refurbishment for Spring/Summer. One side is down for refurb at a time, if another goes down for any other reason (which happens alot), you will encounter significant waits. However they were good about making the announcements to expect this in line, which I have not heard before.

https://www.wdwmagic.com/attraction...-at-reduced-capacity-due-to-refurbishment.htm
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
This is a recap of the Behind The Seeds Tour that we took. It wasn't planned, and we just decided to take this when we got out of the Living With the Land ride. Since we weren't in any hurry to go anywhere else, and the next Behind The Seeds Tour was about 1/2 hour away, we signed up for it. It was nice that we could be that spontaneous. :)

We were first brought into a room where we were showed what they were doing in terms of biological control, i.e. using natural predators to act against bugs and fungus that we don't want growing on the plants.
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Next, we went into the greenhouse where most of the tour took place. We got to see up close the things that we could only glanced at during the Living with the Land ride.
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We of course received quite a bit of information at every stop and we got to ask as many questions that we have. Our guide was more than willing to stop and show us stuff that we were interested in.

cont....
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
... cont.

We were told that this Mickey black pepper plant is the OLDEST plant in the greenhouse. So of course, we all took photos by it.
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We were also told that this date plant is the SECOND oldest plant in the greenhouse. We can't get to it, so the best thing we could do was take a photo of it.
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We got to sample fresh cucumbers that were grown there, and picked just that morning.

But soon enough, it was time to leave.
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On the way out, we saw these decorative design in the sand.
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It was definitely an informative tour. We haven't taken this tour in more than 10 years, so it was nice to be able to do it again, especially when it wasn't planned.

The thing that surprised me was also the thing that was a bit disappointing. When we take the Living with the Land tour and go through the greenhouses, we saw all these exotic plants and produce, such as the winter melon, the jackfruit, etc...etc.. These are uncommon produce and fruits and grains for most Americans. So we asked our guide what happened to these uncommon items. After all, during the Living with the Land ride, they took pride in telling us that many of the stuff grown there are used in restaurants around WDW.

Unfortunately, we were told that many of these "exotic" ingredients are not used in WDW restaurants, and instead, are fed to the animals! I gasped.

I'm familiar with many of the unusual ingredients that they show on the ride, and I'm a bit disappointed that they are not being fed to humans. I can see them not having the expertise to be able to handle the unusual ingredients, but they have this opportunity during the Food and Wine festival to introduce to the guests these unusual items, and maybe expand their horizons on the available produce. Heck, I'll volunteer to tell them what they can do with the jackfruits and the winter melons! Still, it looks like the animals at WDW may be the ones getting better food than the humans.

Zz.
 
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MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
I love the Behind the Seeds tour -- been on that tour about 4 times down through the years. I recommend it to anyone--it's very reasonably priced, and only takes about an hour. Time well spent! :)
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
... cont.

More scenes from 2019's Epcot's Flower and Garden Festival.

The butterfly house.
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I definitely like the topiary at Morocco, since they used the common spices in Moroccan cuisine (and you all know how much I love Moroccan food!). :)
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Definitely a feast for the eye, but not fun if you have allergies to all the pollen and stuff.

Zz.
 
Darstarr

Darstarr

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
I was at F and G twice this year but your pictures make me feel like I completely missed it. Beautiful photos!!!
 
MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
Gorgeous F&G photos! And the Butterfly House -- I've always loved walking through there (not going to WDW this year, but for the past number of years, the butterflies were a "must see" for me at F&G) !
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Minnie1986 said:
How did you enjoy the restaurant? Going for my first time in the fall?
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Our last 3 visits to WDW, we have been to Frontera Cocina each time. We loved it that much. We may be bias, since Rick Bayless started his empire with Frontera here in Chicago, but his food has always been excellent.

The menu here changes a bit. When we were here last Dec., they had a feature on Oaxacan cuisine (I posted photos in the trip report). So that's why we keep coming back to Frontera Cocina. But really, you should get the Mole Chicken. It is lick-the-plate good!

Minnie1986 said:
Beverly?
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You don't know of Beverly?

Minnie1986 said:
Do you remember the name of the dishes?
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I posted a review on Trip Advisor, with photos of the dishes and the names to accompany each one. I received a very nice response from one of the restaurant's manager, and it shows that they pay close attention to what their clienteles are saying. I definitely will be coming back to Sofrito. I'm just afraid that I may have let out a hidden gem, considering how close the place is to WDW grounds.

Zz.
 
Minnie1986

Minnie1986

Well-Known Member
ZapperZ said:
Our last 3 visits to WDW, we have been to Frontera Cocina each time. We loved it that much. We may be bias, since Rick Bayless started his empire with Frontera here in Chicago, but his food has always been excellent.

The menu here changes a bit. When we were here last Dec., they had a feature on Oaxacan cuisine (I posted photos in the trip report). So that's why we keep coming back to Frontera Cocina. But really, you should get the Mole Chicken. It is lick-the-plate good!



You don't know of Beverly?



I posted a review on Trip Advisor, with photos of the dishes and the names to accompany each one. I received a very nice response from one of the restaurant's manager, and it shows that they pay close attention to what their clienteles are saying. I definitely will be coming back to Sofrito. I'm just afraid that I may have let out a hidden gem, considering how close the place is to WDW grounds.

Zz.
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Thanks!! And no, i'm not familiar with Beverly, although I feel I should be as often as I visit these boards.
 
ZapperZ

ZapperZ

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Minnie1986 said:
Thanks!! And no, i'm not familiar with Beverly, although I feel I should be as often as I visit these boards.
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OK, that pic that I posted in the trip report didn't have a picture of Beverly. But this one does.
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If you have never tried it, then you haven't lived! :):D:joyfull:. It's one of my favorite things to do at Epcot, enticing unsuspecting guests to try Beverly.

Zz.
 

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