Trip Report the last time (taylor's version)

Hi all! Guess who just came back from Disney World? Tis I! After over a year away, it was a most interesting trip. My grandma and I planned this back in June after I found out that I got into grad school (again... I'm a sucker for punishment) so it was meant to be a celebratory trip for that and also my grandma would be turning 70 shortly before it! And then the end of September rolled around and I (in Fort Myers) got to experience the delights of Hurricane Ian. I work in a first response field so it was a very busy, awful couple of weeks. After that I decided... If we were doing this trip (which was all that was keeping me going post-hurricane for a good bit), we were going to give Bob Chapek everything he wanted. That's right, we were going to cough up for Genie+. I'm a hypocrite, I know. Does it help if I say that I'm moving to West Virginia and won't get back to Orlando until after the program is over? No? I thought as much... But still... I spent A LOT OF MONEY on this trip LOL... and most of it wasn't even at Disney... Because, you see... While we were going to be in the World, Taylor Swift was going to have a presale for her tour... And I, a Swiftie to the max, knew that I would be going... come h-e-double-hockey-sticks or high water... Did I manage to get tickets? Did Grandma and I conquer our previous records regarding attraction count and step count? Stick around to find out....

We begin with DAY ONE, November 14th. Our travels would take us from Magic Kingdom to Epcot, as MK was closing early that evening for the Christmas Party (no expense spared, I say, whilst cringing away from the prices for the Christmas Party... So we didn't do that). I awoke at 6am, pulled up MDE, and....

But, I shelled out $36.22 (Grandma and I decided we would trade off each day) and got ready for the day. We had an hour and a half drive to get to WDW from my grandparents' house (which I had traveled to on Friday), so we got in the car around 6:45 and hit the road. It went well until we were about 30 minutes into the I-4 stretch... and then we hit solid red traffic. Stand still. Man, I had to pee. I kept looking down at my phone and seeing that we only had 15 miles left, 14, 13... Then 13 for an eternity... and then...

I decided to go a longer back way, because at least we would be moving. I'd rather be moving continuously for a longer stretch of time than sitting in stand still traffic. A brief stop was made at 7/11 to pee (huzzah), and then we continued on our strange, back way route to Disney property.

Meanwhile I received this

Which was a pleasant surprise! We were looking forward to dumping our belongings in the room, grabbing a bus to MK, and getting started with the day. And just like that...

We were pulling in! Huzzah!

This is where I decided to park *crowd oohs and ahhhs*. We took a very bizarre route to our room because we couldn't find the elevator, but eventually we were walking inside and were greeted by...

Welcome, [REDACTED] & [REDACTED]!

A room tour, you ask? No, I shan't do it. I will instead show you things that I noticed.

A crooked light fixture.

Some scum.

The shower got my seal of approval. With the room inspected and no egregious disturbances noted, we were ready to head to MK.

 

[meggo819]

So this guy is probably just some guy wearing a jersey of a player he was a fan of, considering he had two under 10s with him.

I was with you on this, even before you mentioned the kids. I feel like it would be really weird for a football player to wear his own jersey in a place that public.

 

[Spash007]

Loving your report, except for the COVID! Hope you feel better soon!

But hey, you convinced me that I am more than likely to get COVID on our trip, so I am now packing masks and bought some immunity boosters! So if I don’t get it - I give you credit!

 

[tonystark]

I was with you on this, even before you mentioned the kids. I feel like it would be really weird for a football player to wear his own jersey in a place that public.

Yeah that kind of seems like weirdo behavior... The last thing you'd want to do is attract attention to yourself when you're somewhere with your kids having a nice time...

Loving your report, except for the COVID! Hope you feel better soon!

But hey, you convinced me that I am more than likely to get COVID on our trip, so I am now packing masks and bought some immunity boosters! So if I don’t get it - I give you credit!

Probably for the best! I think if I could do it all again, I would have done my best to wear a mask on indoor rides and on transportation. I guess I've gotten so used to life being "normal" I didn't stop to consider the fact that Disney is densely populated compared to my biweekly visits to Target and daily visits to work. It's easy to get lulled into a false sense of security. But the good news is that my flu shot protected me from the flu, because if I had the flu and COVID at the same time I don't think I'd be in fit shape to open my computer let alone post a trip report lol. I hope you have a fun trip and emerge virus-free!

 

[tonystark]

At this point in the trip, we reach a brief Taylor Swift interlude. I checked my email as we were walking out of LTT and saw...

For those not in the loop about the clustercuss that was Taylor Swift's tour sale, back in late October/early November, everyone had to sign up on Ticketmaster to be deemed a "verified fan". Verified fans would be randomly selected for presale codes that would allow them to purchase tickets in the presale. I signed up about 20 minutes after this was announced, because I happened to be scrolling on my phone before work and saw on Facebook an event for a Taylor concert in Tampa. I was like and then quickly followed the link and signed up. Some people couldn't sign up for hours due to traffic on the site, so I was quite lucky in that regard. And it appeared that I would be quite lucky here. Since signing up, Taylor's team "boosted" people's place in line depending on if they purchased anything (be it merch or digital singles) in the interim. Given that the merchandise for Midnights was wretchedly ugly and I didn't buy any singles, my spot in line was not boosted... We'll come to find out together that being boosted seemed to mean not a single thing...

This news was excellent, however, because I was worried that I wasn't going to be selected for a presale code. Supposedly, those selected would receive their codes in a text message that evening. Grinning ear to ear, texting my friends to learn of their fate, and following my grandma, I was guided to our next attraction.

ATTRACTION #8 was going to be the Wiiiildest Ride in the Wildernessss!

My seat awaited me. Didn't pull the lap bar all the way down and my grandma was literally soaring lol. She said it was the most fun she'd had on that ride in years. Not that I endorse flagrantly disregarding safety rules, twas merely a brief lapse in attention that led to a bit of space between lap and bar...

ATTRACTION #9. You'll forgive me if I went a little overboard on taking photographs, won't you? It had been so long...

These wires were distracting. I am not supposed to see this!!

For all of my whining and complaining about the current state of WDW, this ride makes it all worth it (in the moment, that is...). It just can't be beat.

We got stopped here so here's an attempt at dark mode/night mode. Not bad.

We also got stopped here.

 

[tonystark]

Does anyone have the time?

Thank you.

Every time we get to this part, I passively think about the guy that stole costumes from this scene and tried to sell them on the internet.

Stopped here for a moment. Always crossing my fingers that I'll have to be evacuated off this ride (perfectly normal thing to wish for, huh...)

(My favorite ghost)

Thank you for indulging meeeee

 

[tonystark]

On our way out...

Just kidding, photoshoot time!!!

One last ride at MK for the night. I took this becauseI have no recollection of the roof of the Mad Tea Party or whatever the name is looking like that!!! I feel like it was teal.

As close to a character interaction as I get.

ATTRACTION #10

My grandpa knew what ride we were on now.

Forbidden ball pit!!!

There's a difference between these two... I just don't know what it is because I'm afraid that I'm going to be decapitated or dismembered every time I ride, so I'm distracted....

Apologies to this lady's eyes (caught her between blinks I believe), she was not the subject of my photo lol, it was the length of the PM line. We agreed it was time to head to Epcot.

I especially like the placement of the pillar in this photo. My photographic eye astounds me sometimes. Anyways, Christmas decorations.

 

[tonystark]

Goodbye Magic Kingdom, but we would be back in a few days for a much longer stretch of time. And Epcot at night awaited. All WDW parks are prettier at night.

Leaving at 5:16 pm. Not even 6pm!! Not even a straggler being kicked out from the party!!

I'm always going to take the resort monorail. I don't care that they run the trains less frequently, they're less busy and it's a more relaxing trip imo.

Soon enough, we boarded our monorail and were on our way to the TTC.

Look at them all, streaming in...

I assume these are the updated rooms given the Incredibles motifs.

A water break was necessary at the TTC, I was parched. Perhaps I caught COVID from this machine.

A quick transfer but we got a seat! One place left to go.... The place of Walls.

 

[Tuvalu]

You were in Epcot the evening of the 14th?

 

[tonystark]

You were in Epcot the evening of the 14th?

 

[tonystark]

Prepare for me to be enthralled by the little LED bulb lights.

Oh my godddd look at it

Alright, I needed to see someone. It was imperative.

Getting closer... A tiny bit of a line that allowed me to evaluate my smizing skills. I'm sparing you guys from like 8 pictures in which I'm attempting to smize.

No snacks in line but I did look for some for you guys. I know you get hungry.

Almost time for ATTRACTION #11.

The photo screen was horrifically busted. Like, it should have been turned off for the sake of "show", busted. I wonder if someone threw something at it.

OOBA DAY. OOBA DAY!!!!!

Pah-pie-russ. A sort of paper.

 

[tonystark]

I feel like I should go up there and offer my assistance. I mean, you guys have seen my skill when it comes to photography. Could you imagine it applied to painting? He's been up there for a while, that's all I'm saying.

This guy was making me laugh because his hand was just sort of jerking and twitching a couple of inches above the notepad.

BOOTS

BOOTS!!!!!

Pointed out the space station thing to my grandma and she didn't quite make it out. Don't worry, she'd see it next time. Because there was going to be a next time. And a time after that...

So deep into maximum overdrive that my camera captured the speed we were going.

No... Surely we weren't going to use a lightning lane on Living with the Land? Or, as a woman behind us said, "Living From the Land"? (I found this little slip of the tongue to be kind of telling and the entire point of the ride lol).

 

[tonystark]

Of COURSE we were going to use lightning lane for Living with the Land! It's not like we had much choice at this point

They should add a fun little inspiring quote about Genie+ to this wall.

When do you think these telephones were last used? A truly forbidden corner of the Land pavilion.

Time for ATTRACTION #12... Watch your step so you don't slip on that assorted garbage on the floor.

This scene was very... still.

My mind was RACING as to what these little disks were. I was like could they be MOTION SENSORS??? for the lunatics that just can't help themselves?? They were not, in fact, motion sensors. But I would not learn the answer tonight.

Not what I thought of when my eyes were assaulted with the acronym NFT unsuspecting on Living with the Land.

 

[tonystark]

This was so BRIGHT

POTATO WOMAN IT HAD BEEN SO LONG.

Water break. At this point, I was suffering lol. My right knee was killing me. I have a tendency to hyperextend my knees that has been bothering me when I exercise and omg... Guys I was LIMPING around Epcot at this point. But I would not give in. I would drink water and keep going. And take many ibuprofen that evening upon return to the hotel room.

ATTRACTION #13 behind someone who got the message about iridescent sparkling things for the 50th.

No, we didn't teleport. We were just moving in maximum overdrive and got to Mexico in the blink of an eye.

Ah, but of course, our last ride of the night...

ATTRACTION #14.

 

[tonystark]

Guys, I hear that there's...

A FIESTA HOY!!! I can't wait to attend

One day I shall just...

Wonder if these guys ever get tired of performing. I mean, Donald did, for a time...

After disembarking, we briefly discussed food. I wasn't hungry, grandma wasn't hungry, but it was agreed that we ought to eat something small or else we would wake very hungry. And who wants to do that? Anyways, we went to the World Showcase and wandered around, since it was still the Food and Wine Festival. And man, it was BUSY. Thronged with people. Wasn't loving it. Limped to Greece, in the end.

A gyro. $6.50 I believe. And not bad. Pretty much exactly what we were looking for, something small. Meanwhile someone named Sugar Ray was performing at the America pavilion. I thought Sugar Ray was a boxer. Apparently, there is a Sugar Ray who is a boxer, but that was not who was performing. Sugar Ray is a... band. I guess!

On our way out.

A bus awaited us because we were leaving about 30 minutes before the fireworks, I believe. I was looking forward to crawling into bed and getting a good night's sleep in anticipation of the Taylor Swift presale the following day, as I had received my text from Ticketmaster with my code...
How many steps did we do? 22,366.

How many steps have I done in the past week with COVID? Probably under 1000 lol.
Day One Complete!

 

[RememberWhen]

Wowzer! What a day!

 

[LisaBelle]

Late but all caught up. Enjoying your report so much! I love your Grandma! You gals accomplished so much! Sorry you got Covid. Looking forward to the rest!

 

[Spash007]

Meanwhile someone named Sugar Ray was performing at the America pavilion. I thought Sugar Ray was a boxer. Apparently, there is a Sugar Ray who is a boxer, but that was not who was performing. Sugar Ray is a... band. I guess!

Ouch!

Granted, they weren’t that good, so if you weren’t listening to a lot of adult alternative type radio stations in the late 90s, you probably wouldn’t know them…

 

[tonystark]

Wowzer! What a day!

Yes, maximum overdrive stops for no reason

Late but all caught up. Enjoying your report so much! I love your Grandma! You gals accomplished so much! Sorry you got Covid. Looking forward to the rest!

Interestingly enough, my grandma ended up getting COVID but recovered faster than I did lol

Ouch!

Granted, they weren’t that good, so if you weren’t listening to a lot of adult alternative type radio stations in the late 90s, you probably wouldn’t know them…

I truly had never heard of them before... Imagine my disappointment when it was not Sugar Ray Leonard performing on stage

 

[tonystark]

DAY 2!!!! NOVEMBER 15TH!!! An Epcot day, yes, but also... Taylor Swift pre-sale day...

The night before, my eyes bugged out of my skull when I saw a $1000 charge on my credit card from Disney Resorts. So it appeared that I would be going to the front desk in the morning to be like uhhhhh helloooooo I'm a 25 year old child in all of this you guys are supposed to be charging my grandma... I have brought her along here for proof...

First thing's first upon gaining consciousness, I wanted to get my grandma a boarding group for Guardians. I felt bad that I was abandoning her for however long it took for Taylor Swift (jk, I promised her that if the queue wait was going to be longer than an hour I would abandon the hotel and bring my phone, hoping for the best on cellular data). But still. She needed something to do in my absence.

I have fast fingers. I probably wouldn't have ridden this on my own lol and maybe not even with my grandma, but I was sending a 70 year old off to her doom. First, breakfast. Well, really, first is getting that $1000 OFF OF MY CREDIT CARDDDDD don't they know I have an important purchase to make.

Waiting for my grandma to get ready, I stared intently at this map and tried to come up with a strategy. I wanted 109, 110, or 111. Across from that diamond stage where I think Taylor will be spending a lot of her time. But I was also cognizant of the fact that all of this planning would be for nothing because when the time came, I would be at the mercy at Ticketmaster, and Ticketmaster alone.

Tried to book a lightning lane for later in the morning, assuming I'd be at Epcot by then, and the app did this.

Refreshing helped and I managed to get this. I figured I could probably handle Ratatouille if I couldn't handle Guardians lol.

Time for a quick walk to the tower where that $1000 charge was quickly rectified. Turns out, whoever online checks in gets charged for the rest of the room, even if a different card paid the initial deposit. Seemed stupid. But, lesson learned.

Walt watches all.

My 14$ breakfast. The chocolate croissant wasn't heated up (I probably could have asked, but figured that's a natural state of all chocolate croissants). So I heated it up in the microwave in the food court. The smoothie was not good. Very artificially sweet. I was bummed. Grandma enjoyed her kid's scramble, though.

I particularly enjoyed these apple slices. They were fresh every time! And crisp!!!

Oh, crap, grandma you have got to GO. I was not expecting it to be that soon. Quickly, I bustled her onto a bus to Epcot and returned to my room (disposing my smoothie on the way). As I waited for the waiting room for Taylor Swift to open up (yes, that's right, you had to get into a line to get into a line), I texted with many friends to discuss strategies. We were all wanting tickets for other shows, so couldn't help each other out. I also texted my mom one last time and made her give me a final answer as to whether she wanted me to buy her a ticket for the Pittsburgh show so that we could go together. She said yes, as long as it was $250 or under. I scoffed, reminding her of my budget of $300 base a ticket, which she thought was madness. The madness had not yet possessed me, but it would come 10 am...

9:30 am, the waiting room opened. As you can see, we were NOT starting off strong everyone was wigging out, but I wasn't answering texts because I was so COMMITTED TO THE CAUSE. Grandma had texted me telling me that she had loved GOTG and that "you have GOT to ride this ride!!!!" (so technically she acquired attraction #15, but since we both did not experience it, we're not counting it). Next up, she was taking herself on a Skyliner ride, because for some reason she absolutely loves that and considers it an attraction.

 

[Swissmiss]

You heated up a pain au chocolat in a microwave? Quel horreur . (But one still warm from the oven would be )