The “Was It Puke In the Parking Lot Good?” TR: A Trip of Excess-Sept. 29-October 7

This is my first ever TR and our third trip to WDW since 2007. If you want some background info on me and my family, I direct you to my Pre-TR at

This trip was kinda funky....just different than our other trips. @ShookieJones discussed this is his TR also...something was off...we still had fun, but things were weird and our schedule was off the whole trip.

The title for this TR "A Trip of Excess" comes from too much rain, too much food, and too hot. The "puke in the parking lot good"...well, you're just gonna have to read on to find out where that came from!

Now, without further ado....onto the TR!!

Day One- September 29:

We made our reservations for this trip in November of 2011, so our trip countdown began in the mid-300 days. I rented DVC points from David's DVC Rentals (shameless promotion) and in order to get the resort we wanted (Boardwalk Villas) we HAD to book as far out as possible. Food & Wine Festival began the weekend we arrived, so the EPCOT resort hotels were in hot demand.

Regardless of the near 344 days I had to get ready for our trip, I still didn't pack until two days before we left! I know, I know...this site is full of obsessive planners and people who pack nearly a month before they leave...I am a slacker and a first class procrastinator, what can I say?? In my defense, I did have a WDW box in my closet in which I had been depositing the WDW specific items that we were taking (ponchos, cross-body bag, stickers, travel size stuff).

Anyhoo, I began packing on Wednesday night...we were leaving Friday at 5:00, so yes, it was last minute.

We had been saving our change since last November when we planned the trip. We keep our change in Simply Orange bottles that we "Disneyfy". We managed to fill three jars and when we took them to the bank Thursday, we had $505.00!! SCORE! We always have a contest too, in which we guess how much money is in the jars and the winner this year got to do whatever he/she wanted for three hours during the trip. I guessed $510.00 and I WON!! Since I planned the trip and we were doing what I wanted most of the time anyway...I deferred my prize!

The boys had school on Friday, Ryan had to work until 5:00 and I had family court in the morning, but was leaving work at 3:00 to pick up the boys and head home to finish packing. I finally made it out of family court (but not until after sitting through a meeting with a mother and father who were cursing each other out in front of their children...nice...I was SO ready for my happy place!) around 11:30 and decided to go to lunch with a friend...bonus, her in-laws joined us and they insisted on paying for my meal! Yay, more dollars for Disney! I headed home to change out of my “courting” clothes and take our dog to the kennel.

I went back in to work after leaving Slinky happy and contented at the kennel. I actually cleared my desk and returned ALL the calls that I needed to make...I was kinda freaked because I have never been able to get everything done that I needed to before vacation...hopefully a foreshadowing of how smooth our trip would be!

Here is my desk, all clean and tidy...or as clean and tidy as it has ever been.

Picked up the boys at school...they were SUPER excited that we were leaving in just 2 hours!! You may recall from my PTR that when we scheduled our trip we did not yet have the school calendar for this year. After we booked our (nonrefundable, nontransferable room) the school calendar came out and Fall Break had been pushed back a week...like the week AFTER we were going to WDW. I decided the boys were just going to miss a week of school. I prepared a lengthy "Educational Enhancement Opportunity" application so the boys' absences would not be unexcused and they would be able to make up their work.

At home we finished packing all bags and had them next to the door awaiting Ryan's arrival home.

Ryan got home around 5:20 and we were on the road at 6:00....a little off schedule, but I was trying to relax...we had nowhere we had to be until tomorrow! Well...I say I was trying to relax, but I nearly choked him when he sauntered in the door at 5:20 after we had been anxiously watching the driveway since 4:50! Then, he had the gall to go in the garage, get out some tools and announce that he needed to do some work in the car. WTH!!! Turns out he was wiring some sort of contraption that let both boys have I-pod chargers in the backseat. Didn't take long, but you know how it is when you're ready to go and your spouse is diddling around (that's a Southern expression for "not doing much of anything"0.

Anyhoo....I was TRYING to be patient and not stress out.....

The boys were absolutely perfect in the car....no fighting, no griping. This is NOT usual! They both fell asleep fairly quickly. That's my "baby" Will!

We stopped at our favorite Pilot station just before getting on I-75 in Tennessee for “road snacks”. My husband is addicted to “road snacks” and has to have a stash of junk food that one acquires at a gas station and several Monster Energy drinks in order to make the drive.

Tucker at the Pilot station....the thumbs up became his “signature” photo pose throughout the trip.

Dinner was Zaxby's (we are addicted to Zaxby's...to be fair, they do warn you that it is addicting in their advertising) We drove six hours to Macon, GA where we had reservations at a Hampton Inn. We arrived around 11:56 ( to be precise!) and headed straight to bed.

 

[minnielaw]

DAY FIVE: MY MEMORY FAILS ME, BUT IN WHICH WE GO TO DHS

My notes for today consist of one sentence “Breakfast at Boardwalk Bakery with Poppy and Connie. We then walked to DHS.” Ok, that's two sentences.

Never mind the notes....surely you've realized by now that I can outtalk a talker...I will attempt to recall the day from our photos.

We had another leisurely breakfast at the Boardwalk Bakery (or rather on the tables and chairs on the Boardwalk...you can't eat IN the bakery). The birds are quite brave and will actually eat out of your hands. The boys also liked throwing food to the fish and turtles in the lagoon.

After breakfast we walked to DHS and headed straight to TSMM for our FP's. We then did the Backlot Tour and Muppet 3-D movie. The crowds were pretty heavy and so we escaped to the Art of Animation.

Tucker aspires to be an animator for Disney or Pixar when he grows up and we knew he would LOVE the animation class.

That is a GENUINE smile on a teenage boy....don't get many of those these days!

I didn't count on loving it so much myself! What an awesome experience and one I would highly encourage you to try!

Will and Ryan did not do so well!

See mom, I WILL NOT smile!

We apprarently had a room full of people who had been to the class previously, because when the instructor began asking which characters people had already drawn...we ran through Mickey, Goofy, Pluto, Genie and several more. She settled on Rapunzel since not many of the attendees had drawn her.

Here is my Rapunzel....

Not too shabby.

Here is Tucker's Rapunzel....

I will spare you the photos of Will and Ryan's Rapunzels'...they grew discouraged and just started doodling on theirs.

We went into the gift shop and Tucker bought a book on animation. He absolutely loves the book and has been drawing the characters at home. The end of the book has some helpful tips for those seeking a career in animation.

It was time for our TSMM FP's so we headed back to Pixar Place. I rode with Tucker this time and yes, I BEAT HIM!! He plays lots of first person shooter games on Xbox, so I was pretty thrilled with myself....OH YEAH, MOM WINS!!

After this my memory is fuzzy, but I know we rode The Great Movie Ride and ate lunch at Starring Rolls.....again!

I had the exact same meal and so did everyone else. Today there was a strange CM working behind the counter who kept trying to tell me that what I was ordering was too much food for our party. He literally wouldn't give me what I was ordering so another girl came out and kind of shooed him away. I told him that we were on the DDP and that we knew what we were getting. He gave me a small drink instead of the large that you get on the DDP and the cashier tried to get me large drinks, but I said “no big deal”.

We left in the early afternoon again and walked back to the room. I think it rained again and I know the heat was unbearable.

A kinda spooky picture of the looming storm clouds taken on our walk back to the room. Did I mention that I LOVE that we could walk to DHS??

We had ADR's tonight at Sanaa at 5:15! This was the restaurant that I was most looking forward to, having read such good reviews. I am happy to report that it lived it to its hype!

We drove over to Kindani Village and parked in the parking garage. We walked through the main house and went outside to look at the wildlife. It was drizzling and the animals seemed to be out and enjoying the rain.

Cool light fixture in the Kidani Village lobby...it looked like flames.

The wildlife viewing area from the lobby.

When I checked in I asked if we could request a window seat and the hostess very firmly told me that there were no window seats left. Since she didn't ask if we wanted to wait for a window seat, I just dropped it. We went back outside to watch the animals until our buzzer went off.

Check-in desk at Sanaa.

Giraffe enjoying the rain.

Our waiter, and I wish I could remember his name, was AWESOME! Polite, friendly, offered suggestions and anticipated our every need. We started out with some drinks and I think someone had the African Starr Mojito and maybe the Malawi Mango Margarita. Whatever Connie ordered, she LOVED and raved about the rest of the trip. Will had a Mango-Berry Smoothie and loved it too...he was in smoothie heaven!

We ordered the bread service and the red chile sambal, cucumber raita, coriander chutney, garlic pickle, roasted red bell pepper hummus and mango chutney. I liked most of them, but really loved the hummus and garlic pickle.

For entrees, I had the slow cooked in gravy with beef short ribs and spicy durban chicken. This was ok, but the items were not hot enough in temperature. I do NOT like lukewarm food. The beef short ribs were good, but I did not like the durban chicken. Probably the curry flavor of which I am not a fan.

Will, Connie and my dad had the sustainable fish (salmon with shrimp and scallops) which they all loved.

I admit that I forgot to take food pictures tonight...I was really enjoying the ambiance and the good drinks!

For dessert, Tucker and I had the Dessert Trio with chai cream (YES!), tropical fruit kulfi and chocolate cake. The chocolate cake was the least interesting of these.

Ryan had the mango tapioca pudding which looked really good.

I think we ordered the Carrot Halva Cake for Will and it was not so good. Will is not a huge eater. He's a pretty small boy and by the time we got to dessert most nights, he was full. However, we told him that since the dessert came with the DDP, we would go ahead and order for him! We all ended up ordering a dessert that we split...it was pretty funny because by the end of the vacation Will would just look at us to order for him when the waiter came back to take the dessert orders!

After dinner we went back to the room and I think I stayed in (it was raining...shocking) and Ryan and the boys went out exploring. I think they ended up at the Community Room playing games.

They brought me back an Oreo cupcake from the Boardwalk Bakery (another WDW snack item checked off!)

It was pretty darn good, but the oreos were a little soggy. There was oreo cream filling inside the cupcake...yummy.

Thus another day ended....Day Six we tackle the Food & Wine Festival!!

 

[minnielaw]

DAY SIX: IN WHICH WE TACKLE LE CELLIER AND THE FOOD & WINE FESTIVAL IN THE RAIN

This morning we decided that we had had just about enough ham, egg and cheese croissants from Boardwalk Bakery and we walked over to Epcot for breakfast at Sunshine Seasons. When we headed out we passed my dad and Connie at Boardwalk having just ordered their breakfast. They decided to meet up with us later.

I cannot tell you enough how much I enjoyed walking through the WS early in the morning with no one else there! It was like we were VIP's and had special access to the park!

Seriously, NO ONE was around! That would change in just a few hours.

We stood outside the United Kingdom shop and waited until it opened...we were still on a mission for a new Chelsea jersey.

Unfortunately, they still did not have a child Medium Chelsea jersey. Will was, rightfully, getting a little mad. This was the one souvenir that he wanted to bring home and we wouldn't let him buy it the first night and now they were sold out. Yes, Ryan and I felt a little guilty.

We had breakfast at Sunshine Seasons....bounty platters and such. I must admit I was getting more than a little tired of the WDW eggs, transparent bacon and hard biscuits. Ah, what a rough life.

We walked straight on Soarin' and then rode Living with the Land. At that point my dad and Connie showed up and we rode Living with the Land again, Imagination and SSE. The guys went off to ride Mission Space while Connie and I shopped in Mouse Gear. Ryan and the boys then went to Club Cool, which I skipped because the sugary drinks make me nauseous.

At this point it was almost time for our lunch ADR at Le Cellier so we headed to WS and the Canada pavillion. Our ADR was for 12:10 and we were seated pretty promptly.

The temps today were back in the high 90's and it was nearly impossible to be oustide unsheltered for any length of time.

Canada's pretty little garden spot.

This was our first trip to Le Cellier and I had considered cancelling it because of the many negative reviews that I read. However, since Le Cellier was soon to become a 2TS meal for BOTH lunch and dinner, I decided to try it while it was witin our plan.

We had another AWESOME server and this contributed greatly to our positive experience. We liked the ambiance and the dark, cool room was welcome after the blistering, blazing sun. I started off with a Niagara Falls Refresher which was a mango smoothie type drink (non-alcoholic). It was very good and as advertised, refreshing!

The pretzel bread did indeed live up to its hype and was enjoyed by all. No one got the cheddar cheese soup as we were not very hungry due to the heat. Several of us had the filet and risotto and were not disappointed. While it may not be the best cut of meat I have ever had, it was tender and flavorful. The risotto was DELISH!!

The only picture I took in Le Cellier....look at that tasty bread basket!

Will had the chicken caesar salad and even though it wasn't on the regular menu, our server didn't bat an eye and said “Yes, we can make that for you”. Great service!

Ryan had the New York Strip Steak and loved his. I didn't take any photos because it was too dark and I was too hot.

We really didn't need or want dessert, but that's the joy of the DDP....you get it anyway! I had the Maple crème brulee and liked what I ate of it. Ryan and Will had the white chocolate cheesecake and loved it. My dad and Connie had a lychee sorbet which they really loved. I tried it but did not like the flavor, kinda soapy tasting. Tucker had the chocolate mousse and no complaints there.

Stuffed to bursting we headed back to Future World for more Living with the Land.....had to let the food digest. We then decided to scope out the Chase Disney Visa cardholders lounge in the Festival building.

The lounge was in the back of the building and you had to walk through the Ghiradelli exhibit...awful, I know. They gave us free chocolate caramel squares as we walked through.

I wish I had taken photos of the lounge, but it wasn't much to look at. It was a fairly small room with no windows. However, it was a nice escape from the heat and crowds. There were restrooms, free drinks (soda and water, offered in teeny tiny cups), couches (which were full), kiosks where you could search through the F& W offering and a table with chargers for your electronics and Ipads you could use. It was pretty crowded and we had to sit on the floor, but it was a cool place to rest. The ice ran out while we there. They were also giving out VIP wristbands for the Sugar Ray concert that night.

At this point it was nearing 5:00 and we had decided to ditch our ADR at Via Napoli for dinner and eat our way around the world! We had saved all of our snack credits, so we were going to eat until we ran out!

We started in Mexico with the crispy shrimp taco and the filet taco. The shrimp taco was WONDERFUL and the filet taco was good, but not as interesting. The strawberry lime maragarita was mucho delicious!

I didn't take any pics because it started raining in Mexico and continued raining all night. I was not to be deterrred! I had never sampled the F&W offerings and I was going to try EVERYTHING on my list! So, with hair frizzed, raincoat on and feet wet...we made our way around the world!

Along the way we sampled the following:

Mexico: Crispy shrimp taco, filet taco and strawberry lime margarita

Argentina: grilled beef skewer with chimichurri sauce

Desserts and Champagne: Moet & Chandon Ice Imperial

Greece: Chicken souvlaki and griddled Greek Cheese with pistachios and honey—both of these were GREAT

Ireland: Lobster and seafood fisherman's pie (meh) and the Kerrygold cheese selection (meh)

New Zealand: Seared sea scallop with Kumara Red curry puree (good!)

Japan: Spicy hand roll; California roll and Sukiyaki beef pan (all of these were EXCELLENT!)

Hops & Barley: Lobster claw cuddler (just a lobster claw that was cold and you had to try to crack with your bare hands) and the Lobster roll (meh-the roll was hard and not buttered)

Italy: Ravioli di Formaggio (my pasta loving son loved this)

Gernany: Schinken Nudel (one of my favorites! Kind of like potatoes au gratin with noodles instead of potatoes)

By the time we made it back to our starting point in Mexico, we were soaked and tired. My dad and Connie were leaving in the morning, so they headed back to pack up. We were determined to use our Soarin FP's that we had gotten earlier in the day.


We now had 6 FP's and just the 4 of us riding Soarin', so we decided to find two people to give the FP's. We sat outside Soarin', which now had a stand-by wait time of 75 minutes, and watched. I spotted a dad and daugther (about 10) walk up to the CM's at the Soarin' desk and ask about how they could ride. The CM explained that all the FP's were gone for the day and the stand-by time was already past park closing. They walked off with the daughter looking very disappointed. We had found our people!

I walked up and asked if there were just the two of them and the dad looked surprised and said “No, I also have my wife and son.” I told him I had two FP's for Soarin' they could have and he gratefully accepted them. While in line with us, he told me that it was their last day at WDW and his daughter really wanted to ride Soarin'. He said his wife didn't really want to ride Soarin' and his son was still in a stroller.

Good deed done, we were seated on Row 1....my favorite spot!! Ryan left his Titlest visor in the basket under the seat and the CM wouldn't let him back in to get it. We waited at the entrance and spotted someone taking the visor to the desk...thank you honest WDW visitor!! Visor was retrieved.

I think we left after this, although honestly I don't remember. I know I was really tired from making two trips around the WS and we had been in the park about 12 hours at this point.

Tomorrow...farewell Dad and Connie and it's back to just the 4 of us!

 

[s&k'smom]

I'm going to have to get my daughter to the animation class, she is an artist at heart.

 

[DisneyPrincess5]

Okay so a few things here

1). LOVE your TR!!

2). Slinky is amazing

3). A friend of yours makes comments about your weight?!?! This is horrible.

4). I am glad you enjoyed the Boardwalk. I can relate to your initial unclear thoughts about it. I stayed there years ago shortly after it opened. Today it still strikes me as different and I'm starting to realize that i feel this because it is different from other traditional disney resorts. The food is outside and there's this whole world of activity right outside its back door. The closeness to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios is great though.

5). I love that you won Buzz! I either always hit a secret target where I have no idea where I'm aiming and I win 999,999 points or I click that thing to death and only get 100 points.

 

[minnielaw]

I'm going to have to get my daughter to the animation class, she is an artist at heart.

I was really surprised at how much I loved this! I do not draw and am not a creative type, but I really enjoyed it. It was a very small, personal class that made you forget you were a mere tourist at WDW. Your daughter would love it!

 

[minnielaw]

Okay so a few things here

1). LOVE your TR!!

2). Slinky is amazing

3). A friend of yours makes comments about your weight?!?! This is horrible.

4). I am glad you enjoyed the Boardwalk. I can relate to your initial unclear thoughts about it. I stayed there years ago shortly after it opened. Today it still strikes me as different and I'm starting to realize that i feel this because it is different from other traditional disney resorts. The food is outside and there's this whole world of activity right outside its back door. The closeness to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios is great though.

5). I love that you won Buzz! I either always hit a secret target where I have no idea where I'm aiming and I win 999,999 points or I click that thing to death and only get 100 points.

Hey DisneyPrincess5! Thank you for reading along. This has taken me so much longer than I thought to complete, but I will get it done!

1) Thank you SO MUCH! I love it that people are actually enjoying this as much as me!

2) Awww, we love our Slinky! Will just brought home two quail chicks that he hatched in Science class and Slinky is not taking well to the new additions! He stands in front of their "brooder" and whines and licks his lips. Yikes!

3) I know...what a "friend"! I think when she had her gastric bypass they removed her ability to empathize.

I see that you have a Disneymoon planned for Fall 2013! Can't wait to read that TR! Are you going to write a Wedding PTR?

 

[DisneyPrincess5]

Hey DisneyPrincess5! Thank you for reading along. This has taken me so much longer than I thought to complete, but I will get it done!

1) Thank you SO MUCH! I love it that people are actually enjoying this as much as me!

2) Awww, we love our Slinky! Will just brought home two quail chicks that he hatched in Science class and Slinky is not taking well to the new additions! He stands in front of their "brooder" and whines and licks his lips. Yikes!

3) I know...what a "friend"! I think when she had her gastric bypass they removed her ability to empathize.

I see that you have a Disneymoon planned for Fall 2013! Can't wait to read that TR! Are you going to write a Wedding PTR?

Aw yes we most likely will not do a wedding or honeymoon PTR (loooong story as to why-Ill PM you later) but we will DEFINITELY be doing a Disneymoon trip report that will include wedding stuff!!

 

[funsized1989]

I hope there's more!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I hope there's more!

Me, too.

 

[s&k'smom]

I would love to read more.