Trip Report Tales From the Two Goofs Vault

Greetings again my friends. During my large amount of available free time, I have been working to digitally backup some of our old photos, as well as track down and backup any digital files as well. So far I have come across 3 Disney trips that I haven’t shared on these boards before. One from March 2019, one from September 2016, and another from June 2015. I will be doing these TRs from newest to oldest. Please note that I have no notes on our activities, so the pictures will likely not be in perfect order. I will try and provide commentary on things I do remember. So let’s get started!

Trip 1.

When: March 8-11, 2019

Who: Myself and A as always, plus our closest friends C and M.
CEB0ECA0-23DE-4218-85D4-43C6422C5055.jpeg


Where: POFQ for just one night, and Coronado Springs(more on why we did a split stay on such a short trip later).

Why: A top secret mission to photograph and celebrate C and M’s engagement.

A little background on how this trip happened.

C is one of A’s oldest and closest friends, he is the closest thing she has to a brother, and she does refer to him as her brother. He had been dating M for about a year at this point, and we all knew she was perfect for him. He’d decided to pop the question on their spring break trip to Disney. For months he had been asking A and I to come down with them to take pictures of the big event, and to celebrate with them(or console him if she said no!). It didn’t look like we would both be able to make the trip though. I finally agreed to at least get A a plane ticket and she was going to go alone for just the weekend and return.

Well as fate would have it, right at the 60 day mark I was finally able to secure the 4 days off needed to take the trip. Unfortunately there was extremely limited availability at the resorts. The only resort with full availability for the weekend was grand Floridian, which was at a non discount rate. We finally found 2 nights at Coronado, and one night at French quarter. We also purchased APs because we had already planned on being at WDW for several day’s in the summer, so it ended up being less to get the AP rather than buying separate tickets for each trip. I was also able to get the AP spring discount applied to our reservations.

With all of that business out of the way, we were able to make FP reservations right at 60 days! C wanted it to be a surprise for M that we were going to be there. We went along with this plan, but boy was it hard not to spill the beans at our super bowl party that year!

Day 0/Night1:

While I was able to get Friday-Monday off, A had no such luck, and had to work a half day Friday. This meant taking a later flight than normal. We had a 7:15 flight out of Dallas Love Field. Our plan was to be at the airport around 5:30. 5:30 on a Friday driving through downtown Dallas, what could possibly go wrong?! Fortunately while traffic was pretty heavy, and my phone told me to take the wrong exit one time, we still made it to the airport on time.

89563D8A-3670-4EF4-B4B7-B396BB8AB0C1.jpeg

Already a little tired before takeoff!

Our flight down went smoothly and a few hours later we landed in Orlando. Because of the time change, by the time we got down to DME it was approaching 11 pm. We were both more than ready to get to our room and get a few hours of sleep. Our bus only had a few parties on it. We stopped at riverside first, then French Quarter. Our room had been ready since lunch time of that day, so we went straight to our room. It was well after midnight when we made it to our room.

Apparently we knew that @Nunu would like some room photos at the time!😜
EF6BB993-7819-4C63-AE3F-6455B3D05674.jpeg

Another boring redesigned room.

6931EA40-461D-47AA-B4CF-CF8DA5F7EC42.jpeg

The beads were a nice touch!

We finally got showered and in bed just before 1 am.
 

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Saturday March 10, 2019.

I woke up to the sound of the room telephone ringing. I was so sleepy I was convinced it was still sometime in the middle of the night, but it was already after 8. It was bell services on the line, asking if we were ready for them to deliver our things! They delivered them just a few minutes later. It turns out, the person who originally took our bags at POFQ put Caribbean Beach on the transfer tag, so that’s where they had been sent. Glad to have our things back, we got dressed and headed to the bus stop. We were going to spend the first part of the day at MK.

A3783FB5-BB65-4039-A814-077E17033DFF.jpeg

It was another beautiful day! It was spring break in Texas this week, and there were quite a few marching bands and other groups from a few local high schools. It was strange running into so many people we recognized so far from home!

6CFD061C-FE63-4577-965F-8A7B895AD7DC.jpeg

It had been a really long time since our last visit, and we were thrilled to be standing in front of the castle again.

272A4F9F-56E8-40A4-B3B9-D77CA440394C.jpeg

We went left toward Adventureland first. I know we did pirates, and I’m sure JC as well. I don’t have many pictures from our morning, so details are a little fuzzy. I do know that we ended up in Frontierland, which means we had to stop by Grizzly Hall!
3B1465B3-1EDA-4CC9-A5C7-E8663E952631.jpeg

Crowds were pretty bad that day(spring break), so I do know we mostly stuck with attractions like CBJ and Tiki Room outside of our 3 FPs.

We ran into cousin Al!
066D9CC9-6AB3-4A35-A0A0-9F37EABC92B0.jpeg

FD8D82A0-56E0-4751-BF47-4C0461C04B0E.jpeg

He had been looking into the river for something to eat!

0317FCF0-4107-4820-A9EC-238F02D47974.jpeg


620BD69C-8EC0-4F35-9934-4E1A95EDA635.jpeg

A few pictures near mermaid.

It didn’t take long for the crowds to overwhelm us, and we decided to leave the park for lunch. We always seem to get caught in this thing.
7DF5D117-7D35-478E-9860-45380C28167A.jpeg


BB10982D-D290-4955-9561-3333E97544D7.jpeg

The park was still celebrating Mickey’s 90th birthday!

A little more MK coming up.
 
Last edited:

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Saturday March 10, 2019 continued.

We stopped by the parked train for a little break.
CF263850-8539-47E4-958E-BCE6D88C1D3C.jpeg

It made for a nice resting spot. We talked with the engineer for a few minutes too.

E29C703C-DEF2-4D9F-9601-2E32F8E0CEA5.jpeg

The view from the Main Street depot is one of my favorites!

The Dapper Dans were starting a performance, so we stopped to watch.
C07CD6A9-41D4-482C-A06C-9C2731BE9B07.jpeg

1E3CB355-FAD5-4889-BFC8-018F89C777B5.jpeg

We watched the entire performance before finally heading out.

We grabbed a boat to WL and had lunch at Roaring Fork.
5A85EBC9-9FCD-4191-854A-215DCD866077.jpeg

Apparently a cupcake was had. I couldn’t tell you what else.

Soon it was getting close to time for the big event. We made our way to the Poly to stake out a spot on the beach.
2D280EB0-107F-41FC-9CFD-70AF7FDA8DC9.jpeg

We decided on the stretch of beach between the luau and the wedding pavilion. It was very quiet, and there wasn’t anyone around. A CM preparing for the luau did come by to ask what we were doing. We explained the situation to him, and he got very excited! He told us we could hide in luau cove so we wouldn’t be spotted. We sent a text message to C to let him know we were ready, and he let us know they were on the way.

Up next: The reason we made the trip!
 
Last edited:

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
March 10, 2019 continued.

C told M that he wanted to walk to GF from their room at the poly. He made sure to carry on a fairly loud conversation with her so we could hear them when they passed by our hiding spot. We followed them from a distance, trying to be as quiet as possible. They stopped at the beach for a moment to enjoy the view...at least that’s what M thought!
CA1C7C26-0563-444C-8B79-9B73162C9C51.jpeg

Surprise!

EEA6989C-5F70-488C-ABE8-A5BA390B7C58.jpeg

M is pretty hard to fool, but she was definitely not expecting this! Thankfully she said yes! Eventually she noticed A and I were standing on the beach nearby, and we had a nice little reunion!

0B220C63-BF22-4161-91AB-69D55E499AEA.jpeg

The happy couple.

F92F9061-5FBC-443A-96D9-23551EBBC3FA.jpeg

Smoochy Smoochy
D60D41FD-4A30-4945-88B5-F50D63D1CDEF.jpeg

FaceTiming C’s parents. After this M tried to FaceTime her parents with the big news, but they were traveling to the beach and didn’t answer. We told her we actually had a reservation at Ohana for the 4 of us that we needed to get to, so she agreed to just FaceTime them while we waited.

B1D1E1BB-1920-406B-BFF8-6FC243A7EF60.jpeg

We didn’t have reservations at Ohana though.

C394CAE8-5096-4305-8186-0B7502C7FD02.jpeg

Surprise number two! M’s parents had been waiting at Tambu lounge! They were traveling to the beach, but of course had to stop by and celebrate! M was beyond thrilled to see them. Her parents live in St. Louis, so she doesn’t get to see them very often.

We all celebrated with several rounds of drinks at the lounge. The CMs also brought us some Ohana appetizers as a way to say congratulations!

We also had plans for C,M,A,and myself to attend the Epcot fireworks dessert party. M’s parents were needing to get to their destination as well. I ordered us a Minnie Van, and A and I headed outside to wait while they said their goodbyes.
D5FC249B-2AD9-42CC-BA14-58F42B4B077F.jpeg

The Minnie Van driver arrived super fast, and agreed to wait a bit for C an M to come down. He asked if we wanted our picture taken, I think we were too “sleepy”, yeah we were too “sleepy” to say no(M’s father was VERY generous at the bar)! C called and told us to go ahead without them, since M wanted to go clean up a bit before they went out.

Up next: A night at Epcot.
 
Last edited:

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Such a great story!!!
Thanks, it really was cool to play a small part in it.
Love it, love it, love it!! I haven't smiled that much in quite awhile!! And to see M's parents there--that was so neat!!
Glad I could put a smile on your face! How are things going for you? I ventured to the grocery store today, and if people in Pittsburgh are acting like people here, I do not envy you. There’s just no cure for stupid apparently.
 

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
What an awesome story - thanks for sharing it with us!
It was great that you and A were able to participate on your friends' engagement. M's parents surprising the newly engaged couple at Tambu, was the icing on the cake. Everybody looks so happy! 😊
That was beautiful, and it was wonderful they had you there to celebrate with them!
It was a really great day. Of all the great times we’ve had at Disney, that day is probably our favorite. It was tricky getting everyone’s schedules lined up to be there at the same time, but it was worth it! As much as I love all the attractions and wonderful things at WDW, nothing beats getting to share special moments with family and friends!
 

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
March 10, 2019 Continued.

A and I took the Minnie Van to beach club, and entered Epcot through international gateway. We had been wanting to get the new orange bird cup they were serving the orange slush drinks in, but the line was insanely long the day before. This evening there were only a few people in line for the booth when we walked by!
C0850572-23DA-44DE-8985-4BA01F438EF7.jpeg

The drink inside was pretty terrible, but we got our cup!

We wandered for just a bit longer, and stopped to get our festival magnets at some point. Soon C and M arrived and we met up with them for our dessert party.

080E1B70-ADFB-4859-A1DE-B8CAC597D1A0.jpeg

This was the only time we’ve ever attended the Epcot party at the actual outdoor location. It has been raining every other time we’ve done this.

More drinks is just what we needed! 🤪
BC00EA2C-A9A4-4825-8C5E-361560A1A7C4.jpeg


0A2346D3-6B84-423F-ABC7-1E09F0DA5535.jpeg


DB0AF023-ED77-4B69-BDB1-362A350F2D33.jpeg

M was apparently the only one not mesmerized by the magical frozen glasses. I did take mine off to watch Illuminations the way is was meant to be seen!

8A7682A6-1F24-4BAC-84B6-C5A332B19104.jpeg

Just a bit tired!

9B5B449B-79A9-49E1-BD93-9A3CF0CBBA61.jpeg

Getting ready for the show!

E71BE9F9-6905-4FFD-A5CA-B09D6C5A08AC.jpeg

It’s possible that I had too much to drink that evening. Photo evidence suggests it at least! We were afraid this would be our last time seeing illuminations so we didn’t take any photos during the show. A few weeks later they announced the end date of illuminations, and we were pleased that we’d get one last chance to see it in June.

EF2EBCBD-7D5F-49EB-AAFD-737BB45C7072.jpeg

This was also our first time on FEA! Wed been to WDW since it opened, but it was always broken down every time we tried to ride it! Some jerk in front of us blocked my face! 😉

We left Frozen to a completely empty park. We slowly started our way back to IG.
EEB34C38-A7C5-45A0-8AC0-62C8A13E85D3.jpeg

It was a great night with dear friends!

M’s parents had decided to actually stay the night at an off property hotel that night, and were waiting for us at crews cup lounge. No photos from there, but we closed the place out before saying our goodbyes. The 4 of us would be meeting up for a day at MK the next day.
 

riverside

Well-Known Member
Glad I could put a smile on your face! How are things going for you? I ventured to the grocery store today, and if people in Pittsburgh are acting like people here, I do not envy you. There’s just no cure for stupid apparently.
I'm doing good. A bit frustrated with our empty shelves & out of stocks but there's not much you can do. The manufacturers really took a hit with this & it's going to take awhile to get back on track. We've had our share here & the longer this goes on the worse people are getting. Customers arguing with each other b/c someone is standing too close to them. Our signs clearly state that all sales are final with this going on--no exchanges or returns. Lady wants to exchange two canned goods & is told no. She didn't care--she left the two that she brought back & walked out the door with what she wanted. I was so irritated that when I was informed I grabbed the cans & ran out into the parking lot to see if I could find her b/c I was going to let her have it. She was already gone which was probably a good thing b/c I felt like hitting her in the head with the cans. Who do people think they are??
 

MinnieM123

Premium Member
This was also our first time on FEA! Wed been to WDW since it opened, but it was always broken down every time we tried to ride it! Some jerk in front of us blocked my face!

Pet peeve!! I hate it when people do that and ruin a photo for the people behind them.

(Side note: on Splash when people do it, their arms block the view of the really fun drop, at the end.) :cautious:
 

Loco_driver

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I'm doing good. A bit frustrated with our empty shelves & out of stocks but there's not much you can do. The manufacturers really took a hit with this & it's going to take awhile to get back on track. We've had our share here & the longer this goes on the worse people are getting. Customers arguing with each other b/c someone is standing too close to them. Our signs clearly state that all sales are final with this going on--no exchanges or returns. Lady wants to exchange two canned goods & is told no. She didn't care--she left the two that she brought back & walked out the door with what she wanted. I was so irritated that when I was informed I grabbed the cans & ran out into the parking lot to see if I could find her b/c I was going to let her have it. She was already gone which was probably a good thing b/c I felt like hitting her in the head with the cans. Who do people think they are??
Wow! I guess it better that she was gone before you were able to get to her! People are just unbelievably selfish. It’s really sad to see! I hope things get better soon. There’s a huge Tyson chicken plant that we service that actually had to shut down briefly due to the virus spreading amongst the workers. It’s since reopened, but these types of things wreak havoc on the supply chain.
Pet peeve!! I hate it when people do that and ruin a photo for the people behind them.

(Side note: on Splash when people do it, their arms block the view of the really fun drop, at the end.) :cautious:
I do try not to raise my hands if there are people behind me for that reason. I’m not too bothered by it, but I don’t want to ruin anyone else pictures. Im also really tall so my view is rarely blocked! I did make sure to chide C for blocking my face (in jest of course)!
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom