"Woooooo!!" .. "Where's Adam?" - A Spring 2012 Trip Report

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 5, 2012

OK, so it's been a minute since I last updated (actually a few minutes... or like a month lol) but still no memory card, but thank goodness Mom took some pics!! So here we go again....

We headed over to the Great Movie Ride and who was our guide but @joanna71985 !!! How cool!! I was super excited to see someone from wdwmagic in person!! The GMR was great like usual. It's always one of our favorites.

After GMR we headed over to Starring Rolls. I was debating in my head whether I wanted the usual Marble Cupcake or if i wanted to switch it up with the Red Vekvet Cheesecake. In the end, this won out...

Oh. My. Goodness... This cupcake was too delicious. Seriously, the best cupcake I have ever had in my life. The cake was nice and moist (last time i got a marbl cupcake at SR, it was very dry) and the cream cheese frosting was so yummy. Even the toffee pieces on top were the perfect contrast to the frosting. I managed to eat most of it but it was VERY filling. My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it!!!!!

Ashley got the brownie with frosting and M&M's. Super good but also super chocolatey!!

I don’t remember what Mom got. I think maybe just an iced mocha, which Ashley and I got as well. I really love iced mochas and Dunkin Donuts is the best. I only like the iced mochas at certain places in WDW. It sounds weird but I only like the iced mochas that are pre mixed in the big machines. (Like Starring Rolls and Sunshine Seasons) the ones they mix right when you order them taste too coffee like for me (like outside the Tower of Terror and the little coffee shop outside the Epcot gates)

After finishing our snack, we headed to see everyone’s favorite Muppets!!! We love the Muppets and always make a point to see Muppet Vision 3D at least once a trip. After the show, we headed into the Muppet store and Ashley and I were on a mission. It’s a joke in our family that my Mom’s nickname is Muppet Terry. Long story, but we call her that all the time so we were trying to find Muppet Monopoly for her birthday which was going to be on Monday. No such luck though. They didn’t have it which was a bummer since they did have it last time.

After that we had a little while to kill before our lunch ADR so we headed down to the Animation building to see what was going on there. The drawing class was full and mickey had a super long line but Pooh had pretty much no line so we decided to see everyone’s favorite willy nilly silly old bear.

joanna71985 · Aug 5, 2012

derelicte19 said:
We headed over to the Great Movie Ride and who was our guide but @joanna71985 !!! How cool!! I was super excited to see someone from wdwmagic in person!! The GMR was great like usual. It's always one of our favorites.

Yay!!

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 5, 2012

We were getting hungry so it was off to lunch. We booked a new place for us.. Sci Fi Dine In. It was very crowded when we walked in. There was a woman up at the check in stand demanding they be seated now as they walked up 30 minutes ago and were told "we're booked but we might be able to get you in in around 30 minutes." Things like that really make me mad. Make ADR's like everyone else did ahead of time. I understand that some people don't realize you need ADR's but if that's the case, go get quick service then. Don't scream and yell and tell them the HAVE to seat you, making other people who did make ADR's have to wait. Sorry but that stuff really makes me mad. People thinking they can walk in and everyone will drop everything to serve them. OK, end rant.

We were seated after about 10-15 minutes. (I think we checked in about 5 minutes early.) When we first walked into the restaurant, I was wowed. Disney really nailed the atmosphere in this place. From the trees and fences, to the movie screen and stars it really felt like you were at a drive in theater. We were seated in a car to the far left (if you're looking at the screen.) Honestly, I don't remember a whole lot about the movie tailers that were playing as I was too busy taking in the atmosphere and taking pics (which I don't have,,, le sigh!!!)
I do however have our meal pictures and a couple pictures Mom took inside!!

I ordered a Cherry Coke and the Angus Chuck Burger. The burger was good, better than any quick service burger.

Ashley got the potato skins. Why she didn't get an entree, I don't know. Maybe she wasn't that hungry.

Mom got the Smoked Turkey Sandwich with cucumber salad.

All of us enjoyed our meals. Will it be a must do for us going forward? No, I don't think so. I prefer 50s over Sci Fi but we liked the ambiance of Sci Fi. So I think we will alternate between the two places. Our waiter brought out a sundae for my Mom for her birthday!!

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 5, 2012

After lunch we used our 2nd FP for Toy Story. I won (again!!) Such a champ! Then we headed down to use our FP for Rock N Roller Coaster. (Oh, I forgot to mention, when we were at Starring Rolls Mom hustled down and got us some FP!) When we got off RNRC I got a text from Shelley ( @Fashionista007 ) and she told me they were over at Epcot. We had made plans to meet up for a drink over in France and I told her we were headed over now. We made plans to meet at 5:30.

We got to Epcot a little before 5 and decided to ride Imagination before making our way to France. It was a beautiful evening at Epcot and I was super excited to meet Shelley and Jason. I was also a little nervous, too. I'm kind of shy when I meet new people and I kept thinking "oh gosh, what if we don't have anything to talk about?" .. "What if they think I'm a dork?" or "What if I talk too much?" ... But I had no reason to be nervous. Shelley and Jason were AWESOME!! I spotted them sitting right at the tables by the France beverage cart. She gave me a hug like we were old friends. We sat and had drinks and talked until about 7. It definitely didn't feel like an hour and a half, that's for sure. it flew by!! Shelley, I stole this pic of your Facebook since the one Jason took of us is gone

We all had such a great time just sitting and chatting next to World Showcase Lagoon. I can't wait to see Shelley and Jason again next month!

After we parted ways, we were getting hungry again, so we headed over to Sunshine Seasons for some grub.

Ashley and I got the chicken. I wanted a side of mashed instead of rice but she gave me rice before I could say anything. ash got rice also and a side of mashed. (You can see it there in the background.)

And I got the strawberry shortcake for dessert, of course! Love me anything with strawberries!!!

After eating we headed over to International Plaza to wait for Illuminations. We normally watch it over by Mexico but it was after 8 by then and we figured all the spots would be taken. This was a decent place to watch it. I felt like I could see the images on the globe better from here than from Mexico. Illuminations was beautiful as always and made me tear up, especially when they showed Walt's picture on the globe. I think he would be pleased with what WDW has become (aside from some things....) I'm sure its not 100% what he would have created but it is pretty darn awesome!!

We stopped in Mouse Gears before heading to the car. We were back at the timeshare and I was in bed by 11. We had a great Monday planned with some time away from the world!!!

ShookieJones · Aug 5, 2012

Sorry the Memory card never appeared!
With that being said: You're doing an incredible job keeping this TR going with pics from your mom (and apparently Facebook

).
Keep up the good work.
Glad to hear your meet and greet with on of our fellow WDWmagicer wen't well. I'm pretty outgoing, but I think I'd definitely be apprehensive meeting someone from the boards,
but the truth is no matter what happens you know you have at least ONE thing in common.

FYI -- I just got done eating and the pic of that SR red velvet cup of pure deliciousness made me hungry all over again.

mamamouse · Aug 5, 2012

okay I feel better now lol I have been worried for months about September Because somjetimes when I meet people i am shy and then if i'm really nervous I just keep talking.I can't wait to meet you n courtney n jess n shelley,I hope it all works out I'm super pumped.

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 6, 2012

ShookieJones said:
Sorry the Memory card never appeared!
With that being said: You're doing an incredible job keeping this TR going with pics from your mom (and apparently Facebook ).
Keep up the good work.
Glad to hear your meet and greet with on of our fellow WDWmagicer wen't well. I'm pretty outgoing, but I think I'd definitely be apprehensive meeting someone from the boards,
but the truth is no matter what happens you know you have at least ONE thing in common.

FYI -- I just got done eating and the pic of that SR red velvet cup of pure deliciousness made me hungry all over again.

Yeah, I'm bummed about the memory card too

And I had over 2,000 pics. My mom did take some but not nearly as many as me and most of the ones she took are of flowers lol

mamamouse said:
okay I feel better now lol I have been worried for months about September Because somjetimes when I meet people i am shy and then if i'm really nervous I just keep talking.I can't wait to meet you n courtney n jess n shelley,I hope it all works out I'm super pumped.

Honestly, meeting Shelley and Jason was a blast! I thought we'd just talk strictly Disney but we talked about everything from their move down south to movies and everything in between! Definitely made me feel better about meeting other people from here! I'm looking forward to meeting everyone else in Sept, too!!

fractal · Aug 6, 2012

Red Velvet CupCakes at SR are awesome! Just reading the report is making my stomach grumble. Your are right, Sci-Fi is cool but I prefer 50's PT.

Very cool that you met Shelly & Jason and I'm glad you found some pictures!

PRNCSAurora · Aug 6, 2012

That cupcake looks amazing. I wanted to go to Starring Rolls on our last trip but still have yet to make it!

diddy_mouse · Aug 6, 2012

Glad to see an update!

I think I found the first cupcake I want to try at Starring Rolls.

That looks delicious!

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 6, 2012

Monday 4/30 - Mom's birthday: Busch Gardens and a special birthday surprise!!

JUST A NOTE: If you don't want to read about Busch Gardens I suggest skipping to the dinner portion of this day!!

We awoke pretty early Monday morning but not as early as the previous 2 days. Today we were headed off Disney property (shocker, I know!!) for some Busch Gardens action. Tampa is one of my favorite cities and while we wouldn't be seeing much of the city that day, I was still excited to be heading there. Ideally Tampa is where I would like to live one day.

BG opened at 10 so we left around 8:45 or so. I pretty much know my way around Tampa like I do my own city. I'm good with directions like that but Mom wanted to put it in the GPS anyways. A little over an hour later we were pulling into the parking lot. BG had opened a new coaster called Cheetah Hunt that I was anxious to try. It featured 2 "blast offs" (like RNRC but not as fast) Since we only had 1 day there we decided to buy the Express Pass for $20. We get the Express Pass at Uni/IOA whenever we go just cause we want to make sure we see everything we want and don't want to take chances with the long lines. Sometimes we need it, sometimes we don't. Turns out we would need it for some of the coasters at BG so it's a good thing we got it.

While BG doesn't have the same theming as WDW, we love all the animals and thrill rides. We headed right for Cheetah Hunt when we got there. It was SUPER fun!! Definitely a top 10 coaster in my book!

We strolled back towards the animals and Mom took some pics..

We looked at the lions and then headed down to Rhino Rally.

The male lion was beautiful!

Ahhhhh, we're sinking!!!!!

Rhino Rally, compared to Kilimanjaro Safari, is totally weaksauce. We didn't even see the rhino!! Lame! Afterwards, we walked down past the elephants, who were being fed. They would throw them apples and have them do tricks, like dance. It was really cute. If you've never been to BG, the elephants are on the other side of a fence and a little ravine thing so they are right in front of you.

I know some people dislike the fact wild animals are kept in captivity and whatnot but as long as they are being treated well and fed and loved, then I don't see the issue. They aren't born knowing they are wild and should be out in the African plains. If they're born in captivity, that's what they know. I don't know first hand how the animals at BG are treated, but hopefully they are treated well. Yes, sometimes wild animals attack but so do dogs and cats, and they're not wild. It's a risk to have or work with any animal, wild or not. That's just how I see it...

This guy was flinging dirt and grass on his back with his trunk.

Ashley and I decided to ride the Scorpion, one of the few coasters there we haven't gone on. It had one loop and only a lapbar to hold you in. I guess it's only one of a couple left like that in the world. The little boy in front of us was maybe 5 or 6 and was super excited to be riding it for his first time. It was fun but a little jerky. I suppose that's normal for an old coaster like that right?

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 6, 2012

fractal said:
Red Velvet CupCakes at SR are awesome! Just reading the report is making my stomach grumble. Your are right, Sci-Fi is cool but I prefer 50's PT.

Very cool that you met Shelly & Jason and I'm glad you found some pictures!

Sci-Fi's ambience is awesome but I like the food and antics of 50's better

PRNCSAurora said:
That cupcake looks amazing. I wanted to go to Starring Rolls on our last trip but still have yet to make it!

Ohhhh, you must try it next time then! The only downside is they're only open until 4pm... Actually, that might be a good thing or else I'd probably stop on the way out to get some cupcakes "to go"!!! lol

diddy_mouse said:
Glad to see an update!

I think I found the first cupcake I want to try at Starring Rolls. That looks delicious!

This cupcake is definitely my favorite. The marble one is a close second. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the cupcake there. They are pure sugary goodness!!

acrab3t · Aug 6, 2012

derelicte19 said:
Buzz was a walk on and I schooled Mom and Ashley (like usual) I take these rides VERY seriously.

My best score of the week... It all went downhill from here...

See I take it so seriously I can't even be bothered to take my purse off my shoulder!

After Buzz we hit up a favorite for all of us, Carousel of Progress. Just before we went on this trip Ashley and I dug out the old home video of Disney from 1992. Mom had videotaped the whole COP, you know, with the HUGE camcorders that sat on the shoulders and weighed about 90lbs? lol ok so they didn't weigh that much but I can't imagine carting one around the parks with me all day. So props to Mama Dukes for doing it back in the day! Anyways, we watched the old version of COP right before we went. Brought back a lot of memories of the good old Disney days!!

We used our FP for Space and decided to get a coffee at the Main Street Bakery so we headed that way. More specifically we wanted an iced mocha. Yum!!

On the way we saw everyone's favorite trashcan, Push! Ashey struck a pose with him after he asked me what I was taking pictures of. After I took their picture he proceeded to ask "Were my eyes closed?" lol

What time was it when you saw Push? We tried to find him on our last trip and had no luck.

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 7, 2012

acrab3t said:
What time was it when you saw Push? We tried to find him on our last trip and had no luck.

This was around 10am or so I believe. We've seen him in the morning and then also in the late afternoon, like 3 or 4pm. Usually we see him over by the Tomorrowland Speedway.

mamamouse · Aug 7, 2012

aweeeeeeeeeeee that lemur is sooooo adorable!!

Fashionista007 · Aug 7, 2012

derelicte19 said:

Aww sorry you lost so many pictures! That's ok, we'll have plenty to take next month with the rest of Team Studios Central at the ToT 10 miler!! I'm really looking forward to seeing you again, Jason and I both had a blast

PolynesianPrincess · Aug 8, 2012

After that we slowed it down a little and rode the Merry-Go-Round.

After I looked at that picture of Ashley I thought her feet looked weird in the higher stirrup so I said to her, "why didn't you put your feet on the lower rung?" .. She said she didn't know. lol (she's 5'10 so I just figured she would have been more comfortable with her feet lower.)

After that we decided we were ready for lunch. Mom had ordered our tickets prior to the trip and they came with a meal voucher that you could use at any quick service place for a drink, entree and either a side or dessert. We decided to eat at the same place we ate in 2009, Zambia Smokehouse. So we headed off that way.... But we couldn't get there without making a stop to look at my favorite animals on the way.... The tigers!!!!

The people in the "pop up" under the tiger wouldn't move. They were seriously in there for like 5 minutes. The park wasn't crowded but other people were waiting to get in there. So rude...

The white tigers are my favorite. So pretty. We probably spent a good 10-15 minutes just looking at the tigers. We arrived at Zambia Smokehouse ready to eat. I got the chicken meal which is BBQ smoked chicken and sweet tea. The chicken was AWESOME. Fall of the bone and juicy. I think it came with a roll which was good and some corn on the cob maybe? I honestly cannot remember. The best part of the meal though was the dessert. As you can probably gather from my earlier posts, I am a red velvet cake lover. Anything with cream cheese frosting is good in my book. So I got a delicious slice of red velvet cake for dessert. This definitely rivaled the cupcake from Starring Rolls. The sad part was I was so full from my chicken, I didn't finish it all. I also forgot to take a picture before I dug in but I did take one with my Mom's camera before I threw in the towel and decided I couldn't finish it

Mom got the same thing as me and Ashley got a chicken salad and chocolate cake. We all agreed this was a really good meal and we will definitely eat there again when we return, if only for the red velvet cake! lol

After lunch, since we were in the area, Ashley and I decided to tackle Sheikra, the floorless dive coaster. I LOVE this coaster!! I had started to get a headache and with the heat it was making me feel yucky, so I popped a couple ibruprofen (I get CRAZY bad migraines where I get so sick I have to just go to bed so I was praying this wouldn't turn into one) While we were waiting for Sheikra, I was counting the people in front of us and figured out that we would be the last two in the row, thus meaning we would be on the end, with no track under us. SCORE!! Being on the end in the front is the BEST!! We weren't in the front (2nd row) but we would be on the end which was good. Then the guy asked for a party of two and Ashley raised her hand. Before I could tell her NO the guy called us forward and stuck us in the middle of the second row. UGH, really? I was so mad at Ashley for that. Oh well, I got over it and Sheikra was awesome! We decided to ride the log flume afterwards cause it was starting to get hot.

We then headed towards the front of the park to do the one thing I was really looking forward to that day.... What is it you ask? You'll have to wait and see!!!!

fractal · Aug 8, 2012

Zambia Smokehouse is really good! Agree with the seat preference on Shiekra and the tigers. View cool exhibit!

ShookieJones · Aug 8, 2012

Looks like you guys had a great time at BG.

My wife and I went a loooooong time ago when my daughter was about 6 months old. She stayed at my parents house and we tore off to Tampa.

You're 100 percent right Tampa is beautiful.

Back then they used to give out free beer samples with admission...Well I took my sample and my wifes and downed them on an empty stomach...then proceed to jump right onto a coaster - I'm already prown to motion sickness - well needless to say I was 3 shades of green and never really recovered, We had to leave and I ruined what probably the last time alone in amusent park for us! Nice job huh?
Anyway - Your report has inspired me to make my way back there someday - this time with the kids and without the beer.

Especially now that I hear they have a red velvet dessert that rivals Starring Rolls cupcake...

ExtinctJenn · Aug 8, 2012

Love love love this trip report! Glad you started adding more to it so it pushed back to the top and I could find it. I know you did it all for me right? LOL

"Woooooo!!" .. "Where's Adam?" - A Spring 2012 Trip Report

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