PREFACE: Trip Report or Russian Novel?
If you’re like me, you probably scrolled from top to bottom of this post to see its length and determine, based upon said length, whether it was worth reading. When you scrolled, you might’ve seen that it’s pretty long. However, unlike most trip reports that people seemingly drag on for several years, this report is here in its entirety right when posted. One option is clicking the report, letting it load for a couple minutes, then coming back and scrolling through the pictures, I took 4,547 so there should be plenty here, and skipping my commentary. The pictures are really far more interesting than what I have to say, anyway.
Another option is that, rather than attempting to read it in full right now, you could treat it as one of the other trip reports, and read it in increments. To that end, I have divided it into chapters for your reading pleasure. Perhaps you could print out a copy, and read it before bed each night for a week. I promise it’ll put you to sleep!
Also of note is that I am posting this trip report in multiple locations (admitting loyalties to more than one Disney forum may sound like treason to some, but how many of you really only check this board?). Two of these locations are photo-specific boards. As a result, this report goes on tangents at times about photography. I try to keep these tangents as brief as possible and in lay terms, but these aspects of the report may not appeal to all audiences. Just including this as fair warning.
Further, if you're interested in the photography here and would like EXIF data for the pictures, it can be found on the Flickr page for each image that is on Flickr (donated by little watermarks that read “Bricker”). To access said data, click the picture, which will take you to Flickr. EXIF data can then be found by clicking the "More Properties" link in the lower right hand corner.
If you would like to read our previous trip reports, check out the following links:
August 2007 Trip Report
November 2007 Engagement Story
August 2008 Trip Report
November/December 2008 Trip Report
August 2009 Pre-Trip Report
Anyway, enough with the notes—enjoy the show!
CHAPTER I: The Calm Before the Storm
The trip started out as all of our trips (well, most, as we do fly out of Chicago-Midway sometimes) do, with an early morning trip to the Indianapolis International Airport. Once we arrive and check our bags with Southwest, we make the pilgrimage to McDonald’s for some delicious breakfast. McDonald’s is actually one of my favorite places to eat, but due to highly persuasive reports, I have learned that I will suffer a quick and painful death if I eat there more than twice per year. Accordingly, we generally only eat at McDonald’s at the airport prior to our WDW trips. I figure the 10 or so years each visit takes off our lives is well worth it.
After the delicious breakfast, we were posed to take on the world (yes, surprisingly, we were not on our deathbeds). We headed over to the Southwest gate and awaited our flight. Always the fashionista, Sarah took a nap in her leopard-print Snuggie. She had come down with a fever the day before the trip, and was on antibiotics at the time, so the rest was necessary so that we would be able to conquer the parks each day. I sat 24 chairs apart from her, weary of what onlookers might think of the highly fashionable Snuggie.
Our strategy to scare away other travelers to Orlando worked, as we were able to secure the front seats in the plane. As usual, we snapped some ridiculous pictures of ourselves on-board. However, after the second picture, a flight attendant spoiled our fun, informing us that several passengers complained about the flash. I’m not really quite sure how this was possible, as she had been in the front of the plane for both pictures (where no passengers were located) and I was bouncing the flash, so there should have been minimal affect on anyone behind us. Still, I understand the desire of not having flash photography on a plane, I just wish the attendants wouldn’t BS me about it. They may take me for a fool, what with my Figment plush and mouse ears, but looks can be deceiving. Well, somewhat deceiving...
When we arrived in MCO a little early at around 1 p.m., we rushed off the plane, and headed in some random direction we presumed to be that of the Disney’s Magical Express counter. For young people, we must have terrible memories, because this invariably happens every time, and every time, we end up backtracking, and asking for directions. Upon hearing the directions, we have an "ahh, yes" moment where we recall where the DME counter is located. Perhaps next time we’ll either remember its location or take the time to figure it out, before rushing around like chickens with our heads cut off.
After finally getting our bearing about us and making our way to the DME line, we boarded the bus for All Star Sports (hereinafter A.S.S. From the same great Disney marketing acronym team that brought you Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor!). A.S.S. was actually not my first choice for a resort (is it anyone’s?), but I accidentally booked there when making reservations, rather than at All Star Movies. Not a huge deal as they are both fairly similar, but I wanted to get some nighttime shots at All Star Movies, at which we have never previously stayed. The lesson to be learned is do not book your room reservations with multiple browser tabs open. Focus on the goal.
After a stop at Coronado Springs Resort, which looks nice from the outside, we arrived at A.S.S. (okay, I will drop the acronym now) at around 2 p.m.. We checked in, went to our room, and reorganized our carry-on bags and removed some items so that we had only our camera gear and other necessary park accessories that we would need for the Studios. However, before we would head to the Studios, we had a bit of a trek....
The trek occurred because we planned on buying Annual Passes, but in order to get the DVC discount, we needed DVC Member IDs, which we did not have. The trek began by heading to Downtown Disney, where we stopped at Earl of Sandwich for some delicious Italian subs. Sarah always raves about this sandwich, and I was too lazy to properly peruse the menu, so I just ordered the same thing as her. Big mistake. While I normally like Italian subs, this one did not compare to whatever sandwich I normally order. I attribute the lacking taste to the fact that the sandwich did not have an opaque dressing (I realize Italian sandwiches often don’t). Any experienced sandwich eater will tell you that mayonnaise, or a mayonnaise-like product, is a necessary component of any delicious sandwich. After we consumed our mediocre sandwiches, we began walking in the 128 degree heat (at least it felt like that, I believe the actual temperature was 94 degrees) to Saratoga Springs Resort, where we needed to pick up our new Disney Vacation Club membership cards that conveniently had not yet arrived in the mail.
We have stayed at Saratoga on our past two summer trips, so we are familiar with the walk. However, in the past we would make it at night, when it was cooler, and often after trips to Pleasure Island, the experience of which inexplicably made the walk seem more bearable. In the middle of the day on a hot and humid day, with Sarah being a bit under the weather, the walk was far from pleasant (unless you enjoy soaking your shirt with sweat!). While taking the reliable and convenient bus service from Downtown Disney to SSR would have been an alternate option, we weren’t in the mood for an hour wait for something that we could accomplish ourselves in about 20 minutes.
We arrived at the DVC preview center at Saratoga to the shocked gazes of Cast Members who were surprised that we made the journey by foot. After a short wait during which I snapped some pictures of the beautiful murals in the atrium (I’m not sure if this is what DVC actually calls the room, but I need to call it something) and we drank several cups of water to rehydrate after sweating out several gallons of water, we received our Member cards. We were now one step away from becoming Annual Passholders! However, the voyage was not over.
If you’re like me, you probably scrolled from top to bottom of this post to see its length and determine, based upon said length, whether it was worth reading. When you scrolled, you might’ve seen that it’s pretty long. However, unlike most trip reports that people seemingly drag on for several years, this report is here in its entirety right when posted. One option is clicking the report, letting it load for a couple minutes, then coming back and scrolling through the pictures, I took 4,547 so there should be plenty here, and skipping my commentary. The pictures are really far more interesting than what I have to say, anyway.
Another option is that, rather than attempting to read it in full right now, you could treat it as one of the other trip reports, and read it in increments. To that end, I have divided it into chapters for your reading pleasure. Perhaps you could print out a copy, and read it before bed each night for a week. I promise it’ll put you to sleep!
Also of note is that I am posting this trip report in multiple locations (admitting loyalties to more than one Disney forum may sound like treason to some, but how many of you really only check this board?). Two of these locations are photo-specific boards. As a result, this report goes on tangents at times about photography. I try to keep these tangents as brief as possible and in lay terms, but these aspects of the report may not appeal to all audiences. Just including this as fair warning.
Further, if you're interested in the photography here and would like EXIF data for the pictures, it can be found on the Flickr page for each image that is on Flickr (donated by little watermarks that read “Bricker”). To access said data, click the picture, which will take you to Flickr. EXIF data can then be found by clicking the "More Properties" link in the lower right hand corner.
If you would like to read our previous trip reports, check out the following links:
August 2007 Trip Report
November 2007 Engagement Story
August 2008 Trip Report
November/December 2008 Trip Report
August 2009 Pre-Trip Report
Anyway, enough with the notes—enjoy the show!
CHAPTER I: The Calm Before the Storm
The trip started out as all of our trips (well, most, as we do fly out of Chicago-Midway sometimes) do, with an early morning trip to the Indianapolis International Airport. Once we arrive and check our bags with Southwest, we make the pilgrimage to McDonald’s for some delicious breakfast. McDonald’s is actually one of my favorite places to eat, but due to highly persuasive reports, I have learned that I will suffer a quick and painful death if I eat there more than twice per year. Accordingly, we generally only eat at McDonald’s at the airport prior to our WDW trips. I figure the 10 or so years each visit takes off our lives is well worth it.
After the delicious breakfast, we were posed to take on the world (yes, surprisingly, we were not on our deathbeds). We headed over to the Southwest gate and awaited our flight. Always the fashionista, Sarah took a nap in her leopard-print Snuggie. She had come down with a fever the day before the trip, and was on antibiotics at the time, so the rest was necessary so that we would be able to conquer the parks each day. I sat 24 chairs apart from her, weary of what onlookers might think of the highly fashionable Snuggie.
Our strategy to scare away other travelers to Orlando worked, as we were able to secure the front seats in the plane. As usual, we snapped some ridiculous pictures of ourselves on-board. However, after the second picture, a flight attendant spoiled our fun, informing us that several passengers complained about the flash. I’m not really quite sure how this was possible, as she had been in the front of the plane for both pictures (where no passengers were located) and I was bouncing the flash, so there should have been minimal affect on anyone behind us. Still, I understand the desire of not having flash photography on a plane, I just wish the attendants wouldn’t BS me about it. They may take me for a fool, what with my Figment plush and mouse ears, but looks can be deceiving. Well, somewhat deceiving...
When we arrived in MCO a little early at around 1 p.m., we rushed off the plane, and headed in some random direction we presumed to be that of the Disney’s Magical Express counter. For young people, we must have terrible memories, because this invariably happens every time, and every time, we end up backtracking, and asking for directions. Upon hearing the directions, we have an "ahh, yes" moment where we recall where the DME counter is located. Perhaps next time we’ll either remember its location or take the time to figure it out, before rushing around like chickens with our heads cut off.
After finally getting our bearing about us and making our way to the DME line, we boarded the bus for All Star Sports (hereinafter A.S.S. From the same great Disney marketing acronym team that brought you Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor!). A.S.S. was actually not my first choice for a resort (is it anyone’s?), but I accidentally booked there when making reservations, rather than at All Star Movies. Not a huge deal as they are both fairly similar, but I wanted to get some nighttime shots at All Star Movies, at which we have never previously stayed. The lesson to be learned is do not book your room reservations with multiple browser tabs open. Focus on the goal.
After a stop at Coronado Springs Resort, which looks nice from the outside, we arrived at A.S.S. (okay, I will drop the acronym now) at around 2 p.m.. We checked in, went to our room, and reorganized our carry-on bags and removed some items so that we had only our camera gear and other necessary park accessories that we would need for the Studios. However, before we would head to the Studios, we had a bit of a trek....
The trek occurred because we planned on buying Annual Passes, but in order to get the DVC discount, we needed DVC Member IDs, which we did not have. The trek began by heading to Downtown Disney, where we stopped at Earl of Sandwich for some delicious Italian subs. Sarah always raves about this sandwich, and I was too lazy to properly peruse the menu, so I just ordered the same thing as her. Big mistake. While I normally like Italian subs, this one did not compare to whatever sandwich I normally order. I attribute the lacking taste to the fact that the sandwich did not have an opaque dressing (I realize Italian sandwiches often don’t). Any experienced sandwich eater will tell you that mayonnaise, or a mayonnaise-like product, is a necessary component of any delicious sandwich. After we consumed our mediocre sandwiches, we began walking in the 128 degree heat (at least it felt like that, I believe the actual temperature was 94 degrees) to Saratoga Springs Resort, where we needed to pick up our new Disney Vacation Club membership cards that conveniently had not yet arrived in the mail.
We have stayed at Saratoga on our past two summer trips, so we are familiar with the walk. However, in the past we would make it at night, when it was cooler, and often after trips to Pleasure Island, the experience of which inexplicably made the walk seem more bearable. In the middle of the day on a hot and humid day, with Sarah being a bit under the weather, the walk was far from pleasant (unless you enjoy soaking your shirt with sweat!). While taking the reliable and convenient bus service from Downtown Disney to SSR would have been an alternate option, we weren’t in the mood for an hour wait for something that we could accomplish ourselves in about 20 minutes.
We arrived at the DVC preview center at Saratoga to the shocked gazes of Cast Members who were surprised that we made the journey by foot. After a short wait during which I snapped some pictures of the beautiful murals in the atrium (I’m not sure if this is what DVC actually calls the room, but I need to call it something) and we drank several cups of water to rehydrate after sweating out several gallons of water, we received our Member cards. We were now one step away from becoming Annual Passholders! However, the voyage was not over.
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