Where: Walt Disney World, Florida
When: March 14th to March 21st 2016
Note from Matt: Hi everyone! So I’ll be chiming in primarily with my thoughts about the food. In the entire anticipation and experience Disney, the food was not the first and foremost thought, but it WAS a decent chunk of our initial planning,
To explain, we got the Disney Dining Plan. The way Disney food service works, there are three main categories of eatin’: Table Service, Quick Service, and Snack Service.
Table service are sit-down restaurants with waitstaff. These generally are higher-end restaurants in the parks or the resorts, and usually require reservations to get in for most of the good ones. These are great quality food, but also take an hour or two out of the day, and cost quite a bit more.
Quick service dining are full meals as counter service: you place an order, pick it up at a window, and find some seating or take it with you. These have a variety of options of main courses and sides, desserts, and drinks. The fare is still pretty decent quality, faster service so you can spend more time in the parks, and cheaper options (you know, relative for Disney.)
Snacks are just as they sound: Mickey pretzels, ice cream bars, popcorn, bottles of pop, etc. Single items that are a great to-go snack or filler.
The Disney Dining Plan includes one Table-Service meal, one Quick-Service meal, and one Snack per person per day. We can use them whenever we like (multiple meals in a day if we want), of course, but this then requires some careful planning. Most of the Table service restaurants fill up quickly, and require reservations well ahead of time. That doesn’t leave a lot of room for spontaneity when it comes to these meals when we only had a week to plan, and I knew at least one place I absolutely had to dine. We had to plan our days partially around the reservations we were able to get; if we’re dining in Magic Kingdom, it wouldn’t be wise to plan an Epcot evening. We also wanted to get a good value, and I know that we’re going to be paying for some meals out of pocket, so I need to plan ahead which to pay for out of pocket and which to use the dining plan for. Why use a dining plan meal for breakfast (which are much lower in price than dinner)? But then, we want to make sure to use them all, or they’ll go to waste. So yes, quite a bit of planning, but between a LOT of researching and planning, everything came together. Just like Disney magic!
Another advantage of the dining plan is that it comes with complimentary free-refill mugs. All fountain drinks at the resort restaurant (Sassagoula!) are free. Unfortunately this doesn’t apply to the parks themselves, alas, but that’s still a few free drink refills a day, and that adds up. All pop, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, etc., all included. They used a neat RF tag to keep track of who was on the meal plans, too. And we got to keep the mugs!
Monday March 14th
Start time: 6:00 am
After having trouble getting to sleep, we woke bright and early Monday morning and had a nice breakfast. After packing what last few things we needed, Jen took us to the train station where we caught the commuter rail to the city, and an easy check in to the flight. Security lines were minimal, and we had time to grab some Dunks before the plane was ready to board.
The flight itself was uneventful, which is exactly how I like them, with the biggest gripe being that Matt was in the middle seat next to an older fellow who's elbow kept bumping the controls to his television. I had only brought my Beats earbuds instead of at least six pair of headphones, and was unable to loan Matt a pair for his own entertainment. So I compromised half way through the flight, handing him mine so we could effectively share.
Once in Orlando, our bags were handled by the Disney Express, so we boarded our bus without hassle and were off to Port Orleans French Quarter to check in and settle a bit. On check in, we received our Magic Bands, pink for me and green for Matt, and "Happy Anniversary" buttons for us to wear around the parks. We then found our room, a beautiful corner bungalow with a view of the river through both panes, and a large, comfortable king sized bed! By the end of the week we would grow rather accustomed to shouts of congratulations, but it was still a very nice extra mile sort of thing they did. We were later informed they won't be handing these out anymore, so they're now collector's items. Neat!
The room was a very comfortable king suite with a few royal paintings. I've always enjoyed the New Orleans aesthetic, so this fit nicely with both our tastes. It was definitely a great value for us, and probably our favorite of the mid-range! With our luggage in the room, we freshened up a little, hitched on our packs and tested out our Magic Bands on the door. They replaced everything: room keys, park tickets and even credit cards. Not to mention they kept a pretty accurate live-count of people in the parks and I'd be very surprised if they weren't gathering all sorts of data about who was where and at what time. A wealth of knowledge in a little band. Then it was time for the Magic Kingdom!
The first evening we popped into the gift shop in the hotel and picked up an autograph book, then jumped on the bus and headed to the Magic Kingdom to roam the grounds and enjoy a bit of a walk. Walking in was lovely and memory filled, and I was surprised to see how much Disney had changed. Once we were through the mandatory bag check, we used the Magic Bands and our fingerprint to get into the park, which really made the entire process so quick and painless. I was cautioned to use the same finger every time to prevent issues, and after my print was in the reader, getting in was incredibly easy. It felt cool to go be so Hi-Tech, even though I was happily giving over information to a corporation. Take it! learn from me! Help tailor my future visits! YAAAAS FUTURE!
First stop was into the Emporium, where Matt picked up the classic Disney beanie cap with Mickey ears, and I snapped up silver sequins Minnie ears. I had spent hours deciding which ones I would get before we got there, so I went straight to mine and picked them up. Matt took a bit longer deciding, but in the end, we looked perfectly matched. I could have probably bought five or six pairs easily, but the sequined silver ears just screamed to me. After this we took a stroll along the bridge from the center court to Tomorrowland, just soaking in the sights and spending time enjoying the cool evening air.
We of course grabbed a photo-op in front of the distant lit up castle. Complete tourist mode: Activated!
Every day you're planning to go to Disney, you get three FastPasses to pick out rides you want to ride, bypassing the usually long lines. Basically it works by sacrificing spontaneity and you get a one hour window to hit the ride you picked. If done wrong, you miss your window and lose your FastPass. If done right, you skip ahead of an hour long queue and jump right into the ride. Honestly whoever invented that was brilliant.
For our first day we picked Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion and It's A Small World, all Disney classics, then left the others to chance with the hope that lines would die down as it got later into the evening. Heading for Pirates, our very first ride of the day, we found it was down for the count. The lady at the entrance informed us the Pirates were out pillaging, so we should pick one of the other rides that were bundled together and our FastPass would work for one of those.
No problem! We moseyed on down to Jungle Cruise and used our FastPass there, which was a great first ride to begin the trip. Already I was discovering how very hot and sweaty one could get in the parks, and despite decent fore-planning, I began to realize my wardrobe was going to be significantly reduced over the week by things that would be comfortable to wear in the heat.
After Jungle Cruise, we headed nearby to the Haunted Mansion, a ride I had been keen to ride on my first trip twenty years earlier, but had been too tired and too sore at the time.
Here I will break to explain: My parents brought me to WDW for the first time when I was sixteen, as a birthday present. However, there were two events that would prevent me from doing much more than staring at the hotel t.v. and longing for a coma. Two weeks prior to WDW, I had foot surgery. Nothing major, but enough to cause me to have to walk on the outsides of my feet in order to avoid pain. Have you tried this? It's not conducive to long distance walking. The second thing that happened was that Spring Break occurred the week before my parent's trip to WDW, and for me in the high school band, this meant a week long field trip with the band to New York City. Where I would be walking all day, every day. On sore, wounded feet. You can already see where this is going!
By the time WDW rolled around, it was too late to back out, and I was in so much pain and so tired that I didn't want to go anywhere or do anything. I had to have either my mother or my father with me all the time to help me get to the bathroom, or to help me in the Parks just to find places to sit and rest. I don't remember much beyond the hotel, and It's A Small World, The People Mover, and Carousel of Progress. Those were the only three rides I had ridden in the entire week we had been there, for the discomfort of my feet. So for all intents and purposes, I consider this year my first real visit.
So, back to our trip!
We went to Liberty Square and stopped into The Hall of Presidents, which let us into the cooled interior quickly. I'd never visited this attraction before, so we found a spot in the middle and with no idea beyond knowing there would be animatronics, and we settled in. It was interesting to see the very finely tuned movements in President Lincoln, and how when the larger dais was revealed how each President nodded and turned or moved ever so slightly while they were introduced to make it feel as if they were actually actors and not machinery.
The speech was moving in reminding me that Presidents aren't supposed to be unreachable like a monarchy, but one of us, someone born to and living a life of the people. I walked out surprised at how much I had enjoyed it, and the lingering message that a President belongs to the people and not the other way around. Or at least they should. Then it was off to what would become my most favorite ride!
I was excited the moment I saw the facade of the mansion, and we hit the FastPass queue which took us almost to the front of the line. Can you fall in love with a ride? Because I am positive I did. From the uniforms of the cast members to the creepy decor, everything about Haunted Mansion was even better than I had hoped. Grim, Grinning Ghosts would be stuck in my head for the rest of the week.
From here we moved on to Fantasy Land, passing through Rapunzel's courtyard which I thought was a beautiful touch, and hit the Mad Tea Party. Our final FastPass got us in just after the sun had gone down, and the parks seemed to exhale a cooled breath over the crowds. Matt took the wheel and I snapped a photograph of him mid-spin, and it's possibly one of my most favorite photos of him. By the end we were both dizzy and stumbling out of the teacup, laughing and giggling all the way to Tomorrowland where we took our places on Carousel of Progress, another song that would be stuck in our heads the rest of the week, and The People Mover.
On Carousel, I had remembered riding it once with my family, and had vague recollections of the scenes. I was happy to see that they weren't all that different from memory, and the song was quickly stuck in our heads. We'd find ourselves humming it now and again throughout the week and well after.
Fresh off the Carousel we headed up to the People Mover, with no line to speak of. The last time I had ridden, my grandmother had been with me. My sister and dad had gone to ride Alien Encounter, and my mother was on a bench below, people watching. So gran and I had hopped up and took a little ride on the People Mover, and apparently we had timed it perfectly as we ended up right next to the castle when the fireworks were going off, and they stopped the ride to let us watch it together.
This time it was Matt and I, and I let memory play over my current activity, and found that it was also very much the same as I remembered. I was thankful to have that moment, to remember and still hold space for the present, and when the ride was over, I didn't feel melancholy or regret for the way my life had so drastically changed since my sixteen year old self had been on the People Mover.
After that we found this little bridge from Tomorrowland to the castle courtyard, and paused long enough to watch the fireworks. The angle was a little off, but the payoff was that Tinkerbell flew directly over our heads, looked down and waved at us. Instantly I was 6, waving back like I was sure it was me she was seeing, and completely forgetting my composure. Good one, Walt, you got me!
We wandered back to Fantasy Land after the fireworks and decided to poke our heads into Mickey's Philharmagic, since there was no line and we weren't quite ready to leave. It wasn't an attraction I had given any thought to, but as we sat there and 3D versions of my favorite cartoons sang, it caught up to me that I was really here and really doing these things. I admit that tears sprung up and that was when Matt started to get the realization of how emotional this trip could be for me. Through the entire rest of it, he would be so supportive and thoughtful, taking care to let the emotions I felt have a place.
After Philhamragic, we passed Small World, and with it's shorter line we jumped in. This was exactly as I remembered it, and of course it was very quick to get stuck in my head. I remembered the decades worth of jokes about Small World, from Family Guy to Shrek making fun of the little dolls, and still found plenty to enjoy.
Finally, we discovered that they had given us a free FastPass from all the way back to our first ride. Since Pirates had been broken and we used our Fast Pass on Jungle Cruise, somewhere in there they had not registered it's use and we were given what was essentially a golden ticket. An unrestricted FastPass. Of course we went straight to Pirates and hopped onto the boat. If I had to choose a second favorite, Pirates would be it. The songs, the sets and the little dip that felt big from being in the dark, it was brilliant!
After this, we caught the tail end of the Electric Light Parade, and decided to head out of the park. We'd been going non-stop since 6 a.m. and my feet were starting to get a little sore. Of course our bus stop was all the way to the far side of the bus ports, and I hoped for a seat when we boarded. Luckily there was one left and I would come to regret that when we arrived at the hotel and the bottoms of my feet felt like they were on fire. Taking the pressure off of them had let the pain in, and I could hardly even hobble to the room, trying to walk barefoot, and then trying to walk with my shoes halfway on.
Checking my phone I noticed we had walked nearly 8 miles, and it probably wouldn't have mattered if I had stuck my feet into rabbitskin moccasins, my feet were going to be very angry with me after that long on them. I had to shower while sitting in the tub, and would be longing deeply for epsom salt. After that I collapsed into bed and we talked about our plans for Universal Studios in the morning.
We had wanted to visit Harry Potter world, and had plans to get up very early to rent a car and drive over, but it would have been difficult to manage. Plus I was certain I'd be greatly hindered by sore feet, and I didn't want to haul myself around an attraction if I wasn't going to enjoy it. We both agreed that while we adore Harry Potter, we wanted to try Epcot more, and we'd save Universal for another trip down the line. Feeling happy in our decision, it was lights out.
Monday Murphy Food Report!:
So at Port Orleans French Quarter, there are a few eateries: a poolside bar, an inside lounge, and Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory. This last one was our go-to spot for meals at the resort itself, and was a charming Mardi Gras-themed eatery. Giant Mardi Gras heads and bright New Orleans colors decorated the upper parts of the room. It was a cheerful sight (although all sights at Disney are cheerful!)
After arriving, we wanted to hit Magic Kingdom fairly quickly, but I knew I needed a little something to tide me over. So, I opted to get the famous French Quarter beignets. These are like a cross between funnel cake and donut holes, with copious amounts of powdered sugar. I stupidly didn’t get the dipping sauces, which looked fantastic, but this was a quick snack before the park.
In our first evening at Magic Kingdom, we opted to have dinner at the Columbia Harbour House, in Liberty Square. This is a colonial-era style eatery with a lot of American-style options, all of which were appealing. Jewel got herself a tuna sandwich with chips, and I ordered the chicken and fish planks with fries. I was gambling a bit getting fish on my first night, but both meals were delicious and filling. We ate outside in the growing twilight and got to watch the busy families bustling by, with the Liberty Square Riverboat across from us, colonial-style housing all around, and Haunted Mansion in the near distance. It was a perfect meal for the first evening, didn’t take up too much time out of our night, and gave us the energy to close out the park. The frozen lemonade was a bit tart for Julie, but it was nice and cooling. We shared a small chocolate cake (same one they serve in all the eateries in the park, but still tasty) and a cobbler. This is where the Dining plan comes in handy… all of that food (dinner, dessert, drink), all for one Quick-service meal apiece.
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Tuesday March 15th
Start Time: 7 am
I woke up before the alarm, which was much needed since alarms can be very jarring for me, then hobbled to the bathroom to get my shower while Matt slept. I could hardly stand and began to wonder if even Epcot was going to be a massive challenge for me. Once I got out of the shower, I pulled the gel insoles from my canvas sneakers and put them into my sneakers, tied them on and felt that at least I could manage with that. I went down and got us breakfast, carried it back to the room and fussed a bit with what I planned to do once at Epcot.
Turns out it wouldn't be much. I was impressed to see the dome for the first time, and with finding out that we would be there for the Flower Festival. We had a lunch reservation as Coral Reef restaurant and a little time to kill before then, so we headed to The Seas with Nemo, and took a ride, then walked around the aquarium at the end. It was pleasant, and I was still very excited for the World Showcase, but my feet were already trying to tell me they had enough.
We decided to eat at Coral Reef and see how we felt after, and Matt was quick to remind me that we didn't have to hurt ourselves to enjoy the parks. The dinner setting was brilliant, and we were seated very near the aquarium glass where sharks and stingrays often swam by. The food was pretty spectacular as well, but I'll leave it to Matt's Food Log to describe all of the delicious food!
After Coral Reef, we headed back to the hotel with the plan of resting for a couple of hours before returning for the World Showcase. Unfortunately either we slept through alarms or they didn't go off, and we woke up a few hours later with too little time for Epcot. While this was a bit of a misstep, we decided in the long run it made more sense to rest our feet and recover a bit. So into the hot tub and pool we went, getting our muscles as relaxed as we could. It was brilliant, and by the next morning we were all the more ready to tackle the parks.
Tuesday Food Journal!:
The next morning, we had breakfast together at Sassagoula. I had the eggs, bacon, a small Mickey waffle, and a few other breakfast sides, and Julie had chocolate chip pancakes. The food was decent. Admittedly, it was cafeteria food, and the quality varied from Really Good to Just OK. But for the convenience, atmosphere, and value, it was decent.
Dinner was also at Sassagoula, after we decided to spend the evening resting. Julie got chicken nuggets and a hummus cup (which she is now addicted to, and every time she has one at home, it reminds her of Disney.) I got ribs with a few sides, and a milkshake (all part of a single Quick Service meal… pretty good value, there!). Sassagoula has an ice cream and shake station, with a lot of options for ice cream, cookies, brownies, shakes, and floats. I probably should have taken more advantage of that, because a float sounds great right now.
The big meal of the day was lunch. This was our first Table Service meal, and one of the few instances where we made a last-minute reservation an hour or two beforehand (we got lucky!). This was at the Coral Reef Restaurant in Epcot. I’ll tell you, this was one of the dining highlights of the trip, and we’re absolutely going back here again next time.
The restaurant is next to The Seas, which includes an aquarium with dolphins, turtles, sharks, manta rays, and a wide variety of fish (not all in the same tank though). The thrilling part? One entire wall of the restaurant looks into the tanks, and the tables are on tiers so that everyone gets a view of the sea life. The entire place is nautically themed, and the light from the tank plays across the walls. For atmosphere alone, it’s worth the wait.
The food was phenomenal. Julie ordered steak with perfectly cooked green beans and mashed potatoes, and I had the Seafood Scampi with sea scallops, shrimp, and mussels. OH. MY. GOD. Beautifully prepared and absolutely delicious. Just the right proportion of seafood to pasta, a sauce that was tart and clung nicely to the pasta and seafood alike, and seafood that was cooked just the right amount. I had a strawberry lemonade with wildberry foam… oh, this was tasty. The dessert was turtle cheesecake for her and chocolate cake with gelato for me. Each had a few thin strips of decorative chocolate, with gold lettering saying “Happy Anniversary” on them. It was decadent, well-presented, and just so tasty. We had to walk slowly after that meal.
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Wednesday March 16th
Start Time: 7 am
We were up and at 'em early to open the park, catching opening ceremonies of Magic Kingdom. It was a big day and we had a lot planned! As soon as the gates opened, we poured into Main Street and tore our way to Tomorrowland. I wish that this part of the entry wasn't painful, but in the effort to record everything, I'll put down even the less glamorous moments. We had run to this section of the park because we had been told that often times you can ride several rides in a row before the longs become unbearable. This turned out to be true, so the first ride of the day was Astro Orbiter! We were one of six in line, so we got right on almost immediately. And here's where it goes horribly wrong.
Matt and I tried to squish into a rocket together, but I'm way too chubby for that, and he's all knees. When it was clear we couldn't finagle it, he popped out of the rocket and jumped into one a few back. No problem, with the leg room it was actually kind of comfortable. However in the kerfuffle, I completely missed the instructions that pulling the lever between my feet would lift and lower the rocket. I was so busy trying to buckle myself in and smooth any tiny awkwardness from him bailing to his own rocket that I didn't even hear the announcement.
Bizz Lightyear's Ranger Spin was dark with UV lighting inside, so I was able to escape my thoughts enough and fire away at targets, but the second we hit daylight again I was miserable. I'd gone to great lengths to dress up for an afternoon meeting with Ariel, and now I felt about as pretty as a potato. As we passed under the Astro Orbiter to hit Stitch's Escape, I glanced up and saw that the rockets were flying, that many were what looked to be perfectly spaced in a diagonal, and that the one on the bottom held a fellow of my size with a child, while another higher up held a girl bigger than me.
"Huh.. It looks like weight doesn't matter much for the rocket." I mumbled to Matt as we got into line." He raised an eyebrow and looked at me, saying "The handle between your feet is what lifts the rocket. OH MY GOD! Did you think you were too fat? Oh baby, no!" He had been thinking that I was too short and/or unable to bend at the waist to reach the lever to lift the rocket. It hadn't occurred to him that I might have thought I'd broken it just by being overweight. He hugged me tightly and we laughed good and hard at how silly I was being, and suddenly I stopped feeling miserable. The spell was broken.
After Stitch's Escape, we passed Ariel's Grotto, and the line was incredibly short. With a shrug, we jumped into line and I smoothed out my mermaid leggings, and finally got to meet the mermaid that inspired my love of all mermaids. I had seen them in Neverland Lagoon, but now she made it cool to be one, and I was so thrilled. She even took a "Shelfie" with me, complimented my leggings and how they matched her tail, and took a few photos.
From there we hopped into the queue for her ride and escaped the building heat of the day. It was barely noon now, and already I was beginning to sweat just standing in lines. The rides were cooled and dark, and the right length to let aching feet rest. After Ariel's ride, we meandered to Main Street where we caught the Move-It Dance Party. I was feeling good, and happy, so we danced a little and waved to Mickey and Minnie, having a pretty good time despite the heat.
We paused here long enough to get our photograph taken in front of the castle, doing regular poses and then silly poses, which we ended up getting applause for when Matt went down on one knee and kissed my hand.
We decided to head over to Adventureland, where we rode Pirates one final time before the crazy lines really began. On our way out of the park, we noticed the line to meet Tinkerbell was fairly short, so we stopped into her little room and took a few photos while she flittered around energetically and gave me wing envy.
Finally it was back to the hotel for a little rest and relaxation during the heat of the day and the longer lines of the rides. We took a nap and hit the pool again, and the hot tub, then showered and got ready for our evening. It was the bus first for us, taking us back to Magic Kingdom where we turned and took the Monorail over to Ohana's restautrant in the Polynesian Resort. I'd never been into the Polynesian, so it was a novel experience. The food was delicious, and there was a coconut race across the floor. We got pretty flower leis from the Hawaiian lady who seemed to be leading a show, and even got to see the Water Pageant from our window seat.
We decided to take the Water Ferry from Polynesian to the Magic Kingdom that night, a beautiful ride across the breezy lake. Almost as soon as we got off the boat we rushed to our first FastPass of the night, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. I had no idea what to expect, almost every ride is what I consider tame and easy, so why would I think thins was any different? A few low dips? Sure.. didn't Pirates have a big dip? Didn't Haunted Mansion swivel? How much more different could that be? Oh.. silly Jules.
We were stuffed to the gill with food and began the descent down into the ride. There were two queues, side by side with only a small rail between, and on either side of us, walls closed in to lead us down to the platform for boarding. It was sweltering and the air wasn't moving, and all the warm bodies in front and behind me got to me. With no end in sight I started to have a panic attack, and turned to Matt to try and keep as much composure as I could. With heart hammering in my throat, he didn't even have to be told, using his body to give me some space and leaning in to whisper that he was sure the walls behind us had secret panels that would allow me to escape if I needed it.
He was A-1 stellar in handling my panic, which began to abate just a few moments later when we stepped onto the platform and into cooler air. We were towards the back of the train, and as we sat down and the safety bar lowered over our laps, Matt turns to me and tells me he's nervous. Instantly I gripped the bar and stared at him. Nervous? Why would he be nervous? This was just a little ride thing. This was just... and then we took off.
Here's where I'm going to pause and say this: if you decide to ride a roller coaster, don't do it at night if you've never ridden it before. It's terrifying.
Right, so we take off, and I very quickly figure out it's an actual roller coaster. I screamed and flailed for only a moment, then found myself laughing. Going through it in the dark with no idea what to expect was a little rough, but when we pulled back up to the station, I was ready for another go round!
After this, the park closed to regular visitors and Magic Hours began. Anyone staying in a resort hotel could stay in the park and ride the rides for an additional two hours. For us this meant Haunted Mansion, so we booked it across the cooling park and jumped onto the ride, this time starting to sing along with the songs that were quickly and easily ingrained into our minds. Once off, we found one of the cast members and asked her to point us to the Bride's Ring.
Some years ago, the Haunted Mansion ride led out to a slightly different courtyard, where a stantion was embedded in the ground. When they added to the pre-ride lines, the stantion was cut down, leaving a ring in the pavement. Guests to the parks fancied that it looked like a wedding ring, and made up a tale about it being the Bride's ring from the attic. A few years after that, the stantion ring was paved over, and guests became unhappy that tis little piece of lore was gone. A few couples had proposed on that spot, and many looked for it out of tradition. So, Disney Imagineers wrote the lore into actual canon, and placed a real ring into the pavement as a tribute to the love the guests have for the ride. It took a little hunting, but we found it!
After the finding of the ring, we headed to Adventureland again and caught the Magic Carpet ride, which was amusing and cute. We both sat in the front and spent most of the time trying to figure out how to work it properly rather than singing A Whole New World. We totally bailed when it was over, and even though it was cute, I don't anticipate a replay.
We skipped over to Pirates for another ride through, and probably would have gone back to Haunted Mansion yet again if my feet hadn't had enough. We stopped on the walk up Main Street to get a photograph of it all lit up, then went home to sleep well after midnight.
Wednesday Matthew's Food Jounral:
Light breakfast at Sassagoula, including some fruit, bagels, and a muffin. Light so we could get to the park early for opening ceremonies.
We snacked throughout the day, because Julie didn’t want any heavy meals, and I was happy with eating small bits frequently. Julie fell in love with the Mickey Pretzels, and I tried a fruit Nutella waffle (really darn tasty).
The big meal of the day was dinner at Ohana, which is a Hawaiian-themed dining experience at Polynesian resort. Let me give you a bit of backstory: Disney is in my veins. I grew up on Disney Channel instead of Looney Tunes, I’ve seen (almost) all of the Disney animated movies (I got a little lax in recent years) and my parents took me to Disney World at least half a dozen times in my life. My last memory of one of my grandfathers was at a restaurant at Contemporary resort. So there are a lot of good memories associated with Disney. One of my favorite meals at Disney was at Ohana when I was a teenager, because I could have all the shrimp I wanted, and the cold pineapple with hot caramel is still one of the best desserts I’ve had in my life. Needless to say, I was excited to come here.
I was worried that a lot of it was going to be just nostalgia, but Ohana didn’t disappoint. Incredibly friendly, warm, and inviting waitstaff. The MC was a Hawaiian lady who narrated dinner for everyone, espoused family-oriented island lifestyle, and led a coconut race for the kids.
We ordered alcoholic drinks with dinner. Mine came in a pineapple, and Julie’s had a little light-up ice cube that kept changing colors. A little booze to add to the festivities!
All of the food was all-you-can-eat, including the appetizers. Apps included coconut bread, a delicious salad, spicy Hawaiian chicken wings, potstickers, and an Asian-style noodle dish. I tell you, I could have filled up on just those, and I nearly would have. The main courses were shrimp, chicken, and steak, roasted on skewers over an open flame (much like a Brazilian steakhouse). Julie focused on the steak, and while I tried to balance between the three, I ate probably close to a pound and a half of shrimp, on top of a bunch of steak and chicken. I couldn’t stop! We practically rolled out of there (which may not have been wise before going on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad).
One of the highlights was that the Electric Water Pageant was going on out in the Lagoon. This is one of my stronger memories from early trips to Disney (they stopped doing it for a time during my early teens, but brought it back). A bunch of light-up water floats set to Handel’s water music. We didn’t get to hear the music, and I am still a bit bummed we didn’t make time to go down and watch it, but we got to see it while having dinner, and that at least was pretty nice.
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Thursday March 17th
Start Time: 10 am
After some very early mornings and long days, we slept in a little and spent time in the hot tub. It was much needed, and afterward we got showered and walked from Port Orleans French Quarter to Port Orleans Riverside, a ten minute walk by the river where we saw ducks and squirrels. At Riverside, which had formerly been Dixie Landings, a carriage waited for us, and we got to take a beautiful ride back around Port Orleans, waving to fellow guests as we went.
After the carriage ride it was back to the Magic Kingdom to take the monorail to The Grand Floridian hotel. I had been inside once before only very briefly, and it was even more beautiful than I remembered. A full jazz band played Disney tunes and we got ready for our dinner reservation at 1900 Park Fair.
It was a really nice character buffet where we met up with Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Drusilla and Anastasia. I got autographs and selfies with them, and far and away it was Anastasia who stole the show. One teenage boy a table over from us ended up with a giant lipstick kiss mark on his cheek from her, and she told a screaming toddler to "PIPE DOWN!" It was thoroughly amusing, and Lady Tremaine insisted Matt buy me a diamond and a castle for every year of marriage.
After dinner we got a lovely photograph in front of the Floridian mural, then stopped by the spa to pick up a bath bomb, some bath salts and a bar of soap that has a sun inside it and smells like summer. It had been our day to avoid the parks and rest, so we headed back to the hotel where I took a nice hot bath with the bath bomb and felt relief in my aching feet before turning in at a decent hour for bed.
Thursday Matthew's Food Journal!:
Light breakfast again at Sassagoula, with hummus cup, fruit, and croissant.
This was our non-park day, so we had lunch at Sassagoula as well. Julie enjoyed an angus cheeseburger with fries and a cupcake for dessert, and I had a shrimp po’boy, which was reasonably tasty. I tried one of their ice cream sandwiches (their ice cream between two house-baked cookies), which I’m ashamed to say I couldn’t finish. Mighty tasty.
Dinner was at 1900 Park Fare, which is one of the restaurants at the Grand Floridian. Grand Floridian is the high-end resort at Disney World (apart from some of the villas and private suites); lots of Victorian-style / 1920’s-style glitz and glamour, lots of marble and fanciness. While we waited in the main lobby, there was a lounge string band singing Disney songs, we took a ride in the glass art deco elevator, we perused the fancy yearly chocolate egg contest, which are egg-themed art exhibits of a surprisingly high caliber. We even had the time to get Julie a bath bomb and some bath supplies from the spa shop upstairs.
Dinner itself was a buffet-style character dinner, and an odd and interesting experience. Let me explain.
The entrance to the dining hall matched the glitz of the Grand Floridian, between the marble, the columns, the view into their fabulous gardens, and a mural photo opportunity. The doors into the dining room are large sets of elegant double doors. The interior has an antique carousel decor, with turn-of-the-last-century carousel figures and an old calliope. It’s immensely extravagant, and I was mightily impressed.
To contrast this, however, this is one place where a lot of families with small children come, and the casual wear and screaming kids acts as a sharp counterpoint to the rest of the atmosphere. They come here because it is a character dinner, with Cinderella, the prince, and her evil stepmother and stepsisters, who all circulate the room and sign autograph books. The characters were a delight, though, and one of the evil stepsisters actually yelled at one of the toddlers (in-character, humorfully) over her shoulder to “Pipe Down!!” One of the best moments of the evening.
The food itself was, unfortunately, a bit sub-par. For a buffet, it was better quality than average… chicken, salmon, catfish, some steak. Plenty of sides. Julie stuck moreso to the kids’ selection, which had mac & cheese and chicken tenders. I can’t blame her much. The chicken was rather dry, and the sides were so-so. They had a strawberry soup, which I had only a few spoonsful of; it was much more like a smoothie than a soup, but not close enough to a smoothie to drink.
The desserts were a little better, although again, a bit wanting. There was a mousse in a mini chocolate cup, cheesecake, fruit tarts, and a few others.
I tried a little of everything, and left full and reasonably content. It was certainly worth it for the atmosphere and the chance to stop by the Grand Floridian, at least, since I’ve actually never gone to that resort before.
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Friday March 18th
Start Time: 6 am
We were up bright and early for a special tour called the Marceline to Magic Kingdom tour. It chronicles the beginning of Walt Disney's career in Marceline, Missouri and how he developed the ideas for Disneyland and Disney World. We met our tour guide Hayley and set off on a three hour walking tour where she told us about Walt's humble starts and his climb to the top of the entertainment world.
We learned about how Walt began business as a paperboy, and how he enjoyed assigning tasks to people who swore they could not deliver, but in the end were able to give him the finished product he desired. Hayley took us to The Haunted Mansion where she pointed out different tombstones that were secret thank yous to different Imagineers, and walked us through some of Rolly Crump's artwork in the mansion. Mr. Crump is now one of my favorite artists.
She pointed out the Bride's Ring, and we afterward we got to go behind the scenes to see how they perform the largest scale Pepper's Ghost illusion for the ballroom. It was awesome! We learned that the lady dancers have no shoes because in older times, shoes would have been given to similarly footed female relatives. But more than that, apparently they kept flying off the ladies' feet and hitting the glass. We also learned that they have a back up sheet of glass in storage, but in have never needed it in almost four decades of operation.
Then we went to It's A Small World, where we rode through and Hayley pointed out designs and artwork in the ride. We learned that the bloomers on the Can-Can dancers were elongated to cover that their knees wear out fastest, and that the Hawaiian dancers don't sing because it was never recorded, and that they were not a part of the original show. It was a great insight into how it evolved from it's World's Fair incarnation to the ride we love today.
After that we headed to Tomorrowland where we rode the Carousel of Progress while Hayley explained some of the Dopplegangers of the animatronics throughout the park, and how Walk had inserted advertisements for Epcot into the original incarnation of the ride. During the ride at one point, Father blows a fuse and the entire ride goes dark. Hayley shone a flashlight to point out the attention to detail, that even in the dark the animatronics still moved!
She bid us farewell after this, and we found ourselves in awe of all we had learned, we took the Magic Kingdom train around the park and relaxed for a bit after a long walk. I liked the train, since it reminded me of Huckleberry Railroad in Crossroads Village. It was vintage in style, and took a nice pace around the park. I think the only thing I could have done without were the constant, repeated warnings for people to keep their hands and feet inside the train car, which meant some folks just weren't listening, but otherwise it was very enjoyable.
We hopped off after the spin around the park in Frontier Land and took our FastPass on Big Thunder Railroad, which was vastly different in the daytime and knowing what was in store. That train really moves, and I threw my hands up and really got into it!
It was burning on towards noon and the temperatures were climbing, so we decided to head back to the hotel for some rest, food and relaxation. While I slept, Matt got in some hot tub time, and we found some food before heading back to the parks in the cooling evening hours. If you ask me, this is the most brilliant way to plan out a day at the Magic Kingdom. It cuts out the hottest part of the day in direct sunlight, and when you're returning to the park, all of the tired, cranky families are leaving in droves.
We wandered into Tomorrowland first and took a ride around on the People Mover, then a FastPass on Haunted Mansion again because we were addicted. Our final FastPass of the evening was used on Peter Pan's Magic Flight, which was one of a couple of rides with a wait time I rarely saw under an hour mark. It was a cute ride, but I can only think that it's popularity is either nostalgia driven, or it's cool and dark.
We took another spin on the Tea Cups, which was just as much fun as the first time, then decided to find a kiosk and see if we could get one more FastPass for Haunted Mansion. We found some tucked to the side near Liberty Square, and asked the cast member there how to access a new FastPass. She showed us how, and asked us what we were looking for. After we tried to find Haunted Mansion and saw no listing for it, she pulled out an ipad and gave us one of the Golden Ticket style FastPasses. It could get us on any ride at any time for the rest of the park hours. She wished us a Happy Anniversary and feeling like kids at Christmas we bolted for the Haunted Mansion again!
After that we moved on to Tomorrowland again and hopped on the People Mover where we caught a bit of the fireworks and closed out our evening listening to the stage show dancing with the Incredibles.
Friday Matthew's Food Journal:
Light Sassagoula breakfast again, since we were at Magic Kingdom early for our tour.
Lunch was at Tomorrowland Terrace, where Julie was excited to eat. We shared a burger and chicken, with more frozen lemonade and cake. We got to overlook the little pond there, were visited by a few hungry grackles, and watched the crowds.
Later on, I had a frozen banana (I remember these from my last trip!), and Julie had her first Mickey Ice Cream (Mickey-shaped Klondike on a stick, basically). These are much better than Klondikes, though… creamier ice cream and thicker shell. Julie is still craving these.
Dinner was at The Plaza in Magic Kingdom, where Julie was excited to eat, and I’m glad we did. This place is a tiny restaurant right off of Main Street, overlooking the central plaza in front of Cinderella’s castle. Similarly to Grand Floridian, the atmosphere is early 1900’s art nouveau. Beautiful mirrors with ornate etching on and around them, clamshell coverings on the chandeliers, and a beautiful view of the plaza (where we saw part of the Electric Light Parade).
The waitress was a charming, slightly older lady with a friendly attitude. She was very accommodating (she “made” me ginger ale by getting some sprite with a splash of coke, and I couldn’t tell at first). Julie had a tuna salad sandwich with fries, and I had the brisket onion burger. OH. MY. GOD. I still salivate over this thing. Great burger, perfectly melty-stringy cheese, onion, and perfectly-cooked brisket. I was full at one point, and yet couldn’t stop taking bites of it. I barely had room for the chocolate shake and sundae, but somehow, we knuckled down and put a dent in it. We used two Table-Service meals for this, but this was actually a much cheaper meal than the others, so if we don’t do the table service dining plan next time, we still probably will go back here, because it would be a great value out of pocket.
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Saturday March 19
Start Time 10am
We had originally had plans this morning for a Character Breakfast, but we pushed them back to Monday and slept in a little. The later start was a wise decision, and we made the day one for Epcot. It was raining, and not wanting to soak my tennis shoes that I still needed for the next two days, I slipped my gel insoles into my canvas shoes. This would prove to be unwise and any future trips to Disney will see no less than two pairs of trainers.
Our first stop in Epcot was on Imagination with Figment, which Matt had extremely fond memories of. However it was a bit of a bust as halfway through the ride, it stopped for quite a few minutes. I was thankful to be sitting, but we were very near this laugh track that went with a particular scene and the constant giggles started to wear thin. Matt found himself disappointed in the changes and updates, and tried to explain to me how it used to be. I wish I could have seen the old show, it sounded better.
Figment's ride let out into ImageWorks, which were interesting enough. They reminded me of a science museum, and I was a little sad to see some of the displays were broken and everything else was filled up with a decent wait time.
Next stop was Spaceship Earth which I really enjoyed. I liked touring the history of man, the lift up to the stars and the way they represented space. I would have liked to go on it again, but I was keen to get to the World Showcase. The rain was sort of letting up from a hard fall to a drizzle, but my feet were beginning to be rubbed raw where the insoles now made them tight enough to pinch. I was determined to make it though, so we began the World Showcase.
Our first stop was England, where in a park outside one of the shops I saw a squirrel lingering around tourists. So I pulled out a wheat thin and knealt down, and was rewarded by the squirrel putting her tiny little paw on my index finger while taking the wheat thin from my fingers. It was cold, and wet but I have always wanted to have a pet squirrel and her paw is the closest I've ever gotten to that! She didn't like my wheat thin and dropped it after barely a nibble, but it was pure magic for me!
While we looked into the shops, we found a really cute hat with a tiara on the side branded UK Couture, which Matt picked up for me. I also found a Tower Of London teapot I eventually came back for, and while we were escaping the rain, I happened to find a quiet corner in the shop. Thinking we were alone, I turned and saw Mary Poppins on a platform with her handler, just standing there. Apparently the sign that said she was in wasn't currently out, leaving her without a line and quite secreted away. It had shocked me since I'd wanted to see her, and in my tiredness and distraction it registered as alarm at first. I chuckled to myself after and hopped up to take my picture with her, which was enjoyable. She was very nice and smelled vaguely of rose hips. By the time I was done, the signage situation was remedied and families were pouring in.
We tasted some of the food and made it as far as Germany before my feet gave out. They were rubbed painfully on the insides of my arches, and my feet were swollen from being overly wet and confined by the canvas. Admitting defeat we boarded the boat that crosses the inland pond with the intent of returning to the hotel, but even getting to the buses seemed impossible with the pain. I was upset in not wanting to be done as my energy levels weren't low enough to want to go back and I wanted to finish the showcase.
I took a seat on a flowerbed retainer and recalled a vendor selling Crocs beneath the giant dome, asking Matt to take my money and to please go buy me a pair. If I could kill off the pain, I'd be fine to continue. He came back, having bought them himself, and I slid off the torture devices and put on the Crocs. They're ugly, and I never would have bought them otherwise, but lord are they comfortable. I think Cinderella missed the mark with glass slippers. Crocs would have done her better.
With renewed ability to walk, we headed back to the Showcase and finished the tour, stopping into Mexico to ride the Three Cabajeros Ride. It's amazing how better footwear rejuvenates the spirit. It's also amazing how I can still be woefully unprepared for walking despite how many times I've ended up with awful blisters.
We headed back to the dome, and took the Land tour, seeing the hyrdoponic plants and how humans have cultivated food in the past and where they might go in the future. I wish I could say I was ready for what came next... but I was not and another humorous incident was ready to play out.
This ride sounded cool. Why wouldn't it? A simulation? It had a similar run down like Big Thunder Mountain. A little spinning, a little cool air. What's not to be ok with? Gary Sinese popped on the screen and talked a bit, explaining that the ride was going to spin and people with heart problems probably shouldn't ride. Yeah, cool, that's not weird. He also said the capsule might be a little constricting so if I was claustrophobic I should opt out. Well, the capsules didn't look that small, they fit four people across!
Then, as we stood getting ready to go in, Gary informs us that anyone with anxiety might want to head to Mission Control instead. At this point doubt really starts to cross my mind, but again, some of the other rides could have set it off and they didn't. I had loved them! The doors open and a confused family pours out the wrong door, and a child pipes up that "Mom almost barfed!" Cool. Where was Mission Control again? But there where *children* getting on this ride. How could I not do it?I was the Engineer, in charge of putting the crew into hyper sleep and pressing the button to help with the landing. Matt was the Commander. This meant I was the first one into the capsule, and after sitting down I felt like it wasn't that bad. There wasn't nearly as little space as I expected, although the buttons did seem a little far to reach. Then it closed.
My heart rate probably jumped up into the mid-hundreds at this point and only the fan blowing on my face saved me from sheer panic. Even two weeks later, typing it out it still makes me shake. I was locked in, no way to get out and at the mercy of whatever hell this was. For the record, this is not what I consider fun.
The ride started with "liftoff", which I found out after with research meant they were using centrifugal force. Years ago I was addicted to this spaceship ride called the Gravitron. It uses the same principles, only Mission Space is much more intense owing to the confined space and inability to determine what's happening to you. They also spin faster on Mission Space, and instead of 1.5 G-force, it operates with 2.5 G-force.
I wish I could say I handled it with perfect grace, but not being ready and near panic meant that for the first 30 seconds of the ride, I was gritting my teeth and giving a long grunt through them that left my throat sore for a few hours. If they record the riders, I can only imagine the sound I made must have had them dying with laughter, since just the memory of it makes me shake my head and laugh.
As soon as that part was over, the rest was enjoyable. Or I told myself it was. I think I literally screamed in my head "THIS IS FUN. I AM HAVING FUN. SO MUCH F*CKING FUN RIGHT NOW I CAN HARDLY STAND IT."
Thankfully there would be no more crazy spinning, and once the ride opened I was happy to find my legs shaky but usable. I had to spend some time recovering outside, now that the rain had let up. I sat down and laughed about the whole thing, amused that the theme for the day was being woefully unprepared.
It was off to Ellen's Energy Ride next, which was a cute experience. I enjoy Ellen, and of course she's paired with Bill Nye the Science Guy, so what's not to like? I was just as much entertained by the script as I was by the mechanics of the ride.
After that let out, we headed for the World Showcase again, sending my teapot home and finding an adorable ornament for my parents. It was made by a glassblower in "Italy" and the second I saw it, I knew it was what she needed!
Our dinner reservations were for sushi in Tokyo Dining, and we headed up a tall staircase and had a lovely seat at a table for two. At a table near us was a very young couple who could not be older than 25 each. Their hair was shellacked into place and very on par with what I call Instagram styles. They were cute, and obviously together, but I noticed they seemed almost awkward around each other and never touched.
Matt and I, reveling in our anniversary celebration, never took our buttons off and made moony eyes at each other. I think after almost five years married and over 12 together we were pretty grossly still twitterpated. The waitresses found it adorable and brought us ice cream with candles in it and sang us a Japanese song about anniversaries. It was lovely and they complimented and blessed us, and when I glanced at the couple again, they had put on their buttons announcing a recent engagement, had put their phones away and were holding hands over the table.
On our way out the door, we stopped to congratulate them on their engagement and they congratulated us on our anniversary, and I hope we gave them inspiration to be openly affectionate without a care to what anyone else thinks.
It was close to fireworks time in Epcot, so we hung out on the balcony around Tokyo Dining and watched the show. It was lasers and fireworks and good music, and I was glad to have caught it at least once on this trip!
Afterward, we decided to take the long way home, which was a ferry ride to Hollywood Studios and a bus from there. This was mostly decided because it was a shorter walk to the ferry in Epcot and from there to the buses at the Studios than it was to the front of Epcot to catch the bus.
This would be the only time we'd even get close to Hollywood Studios since it wasn't on our agenda. Maybe next time! The ferry was a great way to see some of the other great resorts like the Swan and Dolphin, and the Boardwalk which looks like a really awesome place to stay. Definitely gave us some great ideas, although I'm still in love with Port Orleans.
Saturday Matthew's Food Journal!:
Fuller breakfast at Sassagoula this morning; chocolate chip pancakes for her (sense a theme?), and a western breakfast bowl for me. Filling, although I wouldn’t go out of my way to get it again.
This was Epcot day. A friend of mine goes to Disney now and again, and Epcot is his go-to park, mainly for the food. Between the futuristic part of the park and the World Showcase, there are a TON of great restaurants and eateries. We also were there for the Flower and Garden Festival, which means there were also a lot of food trucks with snack-sized food at each of the showcases. So, I was definitely excited to try all of the different foods.
We shared a boba tea, I got a chicken edamame bun from Japan, and tried a harissa kebab from Morocco. It was raining all day, so my food got a little damp, but it was still mighty tasty. I wish I could have kept eating from the food stops all day.
Julie has already talked about the Mission: Space! fiasco, but right after that, we shared a strawberry slushy. Pretty good. I hope Julie won’t associate it with getting nauseous…
Julie got to have her sushi for lunch from one of the quick-service eateries in Japan. As far as sushi goes, it wasn’t fantastic, but she had been craving it, and it’s vacation after all!
Dinner was at Tokyo Dining, a table-service Japanese restaurant. Julie was still craving sushi. This was a relatively last-minute decision made earlier in the day, and it was a mixed bag.
The downside: even with a reservation, we waited a LONG time, and we were pretty darn hungry even when we got there. I was getting hangry, Julie needed to sit, and the lack of food was starting to get to her. They were trying to be accommodating, but it still took quite a long while before we were seated and were able to eat.
The good points: The restaurant had a delightful atmosphere. It had a lovely view of the lake (although we were seated near the back, and a blend of modern comfort and traditional Japanese themes. Subtle lighting and Japanese artwork.
The food was very good quality. Julie ordered the bento box, a nice sampling of steak, sashimi, sushi, tempura, rice, and veggies. I had the steak and sushi combo, with tenderloin steak (and a few rather scrumptious dipping sauces), a couple pieces of volcano roll, and veggies and rice. Julie ordered a Sakura cherry plum martini, which was sweet and very festive. For dessert, we had a ginger cake and a green tea cake. I can’t actually remember which I preferred, but they were definitely a different change of pace. Light but tasty, nicely ended the meal.
Interesting little note. There was a gentleman eating by himself at a table, enjoying a beer and a bit of sushi. We didn’t ask, but I got the impression that this was something maybe he used to do with a loved one that had passed on. I considered offering to cover his meal or his beer, but I wasn’t confident enough in my guess to ask him.
Despite the delays, we lucked out; we were able to stay out on the restaurant terrace and watch the firework / laser-light show from there. It also meant that, as the park closed, this encouraged us to leave via the back exit. We got to experience the boat ride past some of the Epcot-area resorts, and I got to see the backside of the Swan and Dolphin too. We even spotted Hollywood Studios from the bus stop.
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Sunday March 20th
Start Time: 10am
Luck would have it that my mother's cousin Kim and her husband Greg were in town at their timeshare that wasn't far from our hotel. They picked us up and took us to their condominium park where we drank tea, fed a goose and then went to lunch just across the parking lot. Since they're the same age or thereabouts as my mother, and I have a habit of adopting her cousins as my honorary Aunts and Uncles, I refer to them with those titles. It's too complicated to say "First cousin once removed" anyway.
It was so good to see them, and I realize how much I miss the old family reunions I grew up with. It's always been too long!
They dropped us off at the hotel again, and we got a quick nap and started to pack up the room. I was sad that the vacation was drawing to a close, and was already looking forward to planning the next.
We went back to Magic Kingdom in the early evening and made sure to hit some of the smaller attractions and stuff Matt remembered from childhood visits that we had skipped earlier in the week. After several days of listening to Matt singing the song from the Tiki Room, we finally got to hear it again and I was amused by the cuteness. He happily mentioned it was exactly how he remembered it!
We took another ride on Pirates, which was as great as the first time around and stopped to pick up personalized leather bracelets for each of us and one for Jen. From there we skipped over to the Country Bear Jamboree which was amusing in how dark some of the lyrics were. Very bluegrass/old country vaudeville show, which was a strange juxtaposition over animatronic bears.
We had planned to go for a ride on the Liberty paddleboat, but after the boat had pulled up and they were making no designs to explain the delay in boarding, we left to find other things to do. This had us around the shooting range with the laser guns that looked like rifles. We did pretty well once we found a pair of guns that worked, and by the time we were done the platform had gone from empty to crowded.
It was growing later now, so we haded for the main area in front of the castle, took a seat and waited for Wishes Nighttime Spectacular fireworks show. We'd caught it at a different angle before, and this time we'd be right in front. Lines were already forming an hour early so we sat onn the pavement and killed an hour. It was good we did, as we had a perfect view. The only detractor were two young girls trying to sit on the railing, and they kept falling off and trampling the flowers despite their father trying to tell them not to. They also wore bright flashing LED necklaces, but were kind enough to turn them off so they didn't blind Matt.
Before we'd found the place, Matt bought me a light up rose that was identical to one my father had gotten for me when I was 16. It was such a touching thing that had me grinning and feeling special.
After the fireworks we went back to Tomorrowland and Matt hit the 999,999 points mark on the Buzz Lightyear ride, which made him a Galactic Hero. This would get a few cast members patting him on the back! They even gave me a button, which was nice of them for doing it.
We had to ride Carousel of Progress one more time, for this trip and then meandered to hit the Haunted Mansion which we rode twice in a row owing to using our FastPass and then by the time that was done, the waiting line was dwindled to 10 minutes. We asked about the urban legend that if you stand in the fairy ring outside the mansion on a full moon and chant "Liota, Liota, Liota" a shadow passes in front of one of the windows, but the cast member had never even heard of it.
Our late dinner reservation was for Be Our Guest, a restaurant made up to look like Beast's castle. It was faithful to the film, beautiful and the food was amazing. They even gave us free Gray Stuff with congratulatory candles. I'm pretty sure it was just gray cake frosting, but it was delicious!
While eating though I happened to glance over at a girl seated a couple of tables down who was wearing one of the tiaras I'd seen and fell in love with in Epcot. I'd been able to walk away from it then, but seeing it on her made me really want one. What can I say? It's a weakness.
As we walked back up to Main Street to head out of the park, I saw a store filled with glass trinkets and Matt sweetly took me in and let me pick out the tiara I wanted. I exchanged my Minnie Ears for the tiara and wore it back to the hotel feeling like this really had been a magical trip.
(The one in the middle)
It was difficult to get to sleep that night owing to knowing it was our last night. I didn't want the magic to be over!
Sunday Matthew's Food Journal!:
Sunday, we had lunch offsite with Julie’s Aunt Kim and Uncle Greg. They’re fantastic people, and I’m really glad the timing worked out. I’ve met them once before at their place in Michigan, and we’ve ordered candles from Aunt Kim a few times before. They apparently have a time-share in Florida near Disney, and I’ll admit, getting a time-share has now crossed my mind (although I do love staying at a Disney resort). They treated us to lunch at the restaurant there; buffalo chicken salad for me, and a California wrap for Julie.
Early dinner was again at Columbia Harbour House in Magic Kingdom. We split another tuna salad sandwich (Julie was on a kick with those, but darn it, if they weren’t tasty!), and a bit later, Julie and I shared another Mickey Ice Cream. I’m pretty sure those things are #4 or 5 on the list of reasons Julie wants to go back.
Late dinner was at Be Our Guest, the Beauty and the Beast themed restaurant in Beast’s Castle. This was my first time here, because it’s relatively new (well, they didn’t have it 16 years ago when I last went, at least). This place was easily #2 on the list of places we ate that week (#1 being Coral Reef… I feel like I’m betraying Ohana by saying that, but that’s how good these restaurants were.)
We had really wanted to eat here, but it was booked up for all of the regular dinner times. We were lucky to sneak in an 11:00 pm reservation on Sunday night, and we took it. It’s vacation, after all! We can eat when we want.
The restaurant is located at the very back of the park in Fantasyland. The greeters check your reservation outside with a pleasant “Bonsoir”, and direct you across a bridge spanning a lightly babbling brook to the entrance to the castle. Guests wait outside under the stars, surrounded by the sounds of lightly running water, and in front of two large lion statues flanking a massive set of double doors. A host or hostess opens the doors and leads you inside when it is your time, through a foyer and small set of hallways bedecked with murals and tapestries depicting Belle and Beast’s story.
The main dining room is the ballroom of the castle, and it is breathtaking. High vaulted ceilings, a wrap-around landing above the dance floor, and against one wall was a set of “windows” looking out on a snowy village scene, with snow falling. We were seated, and the (red) napkins were twisted into a rose. The waitstaff were bedecked in themed clothing as well. Between the scope of the dining room, the lighting, and the attention to detail in the atmosphere, it was stunning.
For dinner, I had petite lamb chops with a polenta cake and pomegranate-pear-butternut-squash puree (arguably the fanciest meal of the trip). Julie had strip steak with French fries and green beans. We treated ourselves to a glass of champagne each as well, since this was the most romantic meal of the trip, and we felt it would be ideal to celebrate our anniversary with.
Do you remember the song “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the Beast? One of the most memorable lines was “Try the grey stuff, it’s delicious!” Well! They actually do have “the grey stuff” here! It apparently used to be a secret menu item, and now is one of the regular desserts. I looked it up, and it is a whipped cookies-and-cream panna cotta (a gelatinized milk dessert). It was very similar to a thick mousse, and it is indeed grey. Because we were celebrating our anniversary, we got two small complimentary dabs of it. Delicious! We additionally had some dessert, which included an orange-infused éclair and a strawberry cupcake.
Funny story: the family next to us had several small children. WHAT those children were doing at a fancy restaurant at 11 at night, I will have no idea. They were falling asleep throughout the meal, and one literally was sleeping under the table. Those poor parents. It was mighty amusing, to say the least.
After dinner, we were encouraged to get up and “wander the castle”. This is where we found two other side dining rooms with different themes. One of these was the Beast’s bedroom, with torn tapestries, and the glowing rose. It was quite lovely. After dinner, we got to have pictures with Beast, too. Overall, it was a magical dining experience.
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Monday March 21st
Start Time: 8 am
We checked out of the room very early and dropped our luggage off at the baggage check area of the hotel. We had breakfast reservations at the Crystal Palace, so we headed off to the park where we met Winnie The Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore. Breakfast was delicious, and they gave us a special cupcake each and a signed card. It was a birthday card, which the waitress apologized for, but we really enjoyed.
We had a few more hours to spend in Magic Kingdom, so we headed over and caught the train to Adventureland. To spare my tiara being crushed, and because it's a friggin tiara, I wore it around the park the entire day. It was even more comfortable than the ears and made the day super special.
We hit Pirates one more time, the Haunted Mansion again with the gift shop after to send home some of the items we had decided on earlier in the week and then moved towards the castle. Behind it is a little Christmas Shoppe, and we picked out an ornament for Matt's parents, and one for our Christmas tree, deciding on a mini castle for his parents and the Haunted Mansion Mickey Ears for us.
We picked up a few postcards as well, then went to ride the Buzz Lightyear ride again in an attempt to help me win the Galactic Hero score. During the ride Matt tried to help me through it, but we came to the conclusion that the right side has better angles as the targets I needed to hit were too low for the range of the gun's movement. So we decided it'll be a goal for the next trip, then went to Haunted Mansion one last time.
There was still time in the day, but we were exhausted and the crowds were insane. The Easter rush had begun and the park was choked out with people, so we went back to the hotel, dug out our swimsuits and killed time in the hot tub. It was a really relaxing way to unwind before the rush to get to the airport, and we had dinner at Port Orleans before boarding the Express and leaving the resort.
The bus ride was easy enough, but I was sad to be leaving. Even as we chatted about all the great adventures, I was already wishing we could go back. I guess that's part of the magic, it's so great that you can't wait to go again!
I wore my tiara all the way to the airport and through TSA, laughing at the extra layers of clothing we had to put on to get out suitcase under the 50 pound mark. We made it at 49.5! While in line for TSA, the agent making announcements put on an entertaining spiel about how the reason we had to take off hoodies, jackets and sweatshirts is because we're in Florida where natives do not wear hoodies, jackets and sweaters. He then ran through a script of what we should declare and how to proceed, then would ask people for different languages and repeat the whole thing in Spanish and Portugese. It was really impressive as he was fluent in them.
As we got seated on the plane, one of the flight attendants walked up to me, and smiled. She was young, married (or wearing a wedding set at least) and very friendly, stopping with her arm resting on the seat ahead of me. She explained that she had to stop because "I had seen you in the bathroom in the terminal but I wasn't in uniform and didn't want to be a creeper. But I love all of this." She then made a general motion to my outfit, hair and tiara and I had to laugh.
The rest of the trip was uneventful, at least until we got over North Carolina when my fatigue, anxiety and dire need for introversion collided into a panic attack. I did everything in my power to hold on, knowing that if I suddenly started screaming or crying or wildly panicking they'd have to divert the plane because there's no reasoning with it.
Thankfully Matt was able to keep me just at the threshold of panic so I could keep from freaking out completely, and held my hand until we landed. It's weird now that I don't realize how much time passed, because in my memory we landed not long after, but I'm aware that I was in a state of solid panic for at least forty-five minutes.
Jen picked us up from the airport around midnight and drove us home, where the kitties were thrilled to see us and we had the chance to unwind before falling into bed to sleep after such a long day.
It was a beautiful trip and just exactly what the Mister and I needed for a beautiful vacation. It was a second honeymoon, and we were so blessed to spend it together, healthy and happy enough to enjoy it. Who knows what tomorrow brings, but we have the memories to last a lifetime.
Monday Matthew's Food Journal!:
Hearty Sassagoula breakfast. Guess what Julie had again? I think she liked them. I had the breakfast platter once again.
Julie got in one more Mickey ice cream while we were at the park. Can’t blame her!
Lunch was at the Crystal Palace. This is a character dining experience that I remember from when I was a kid. It’s a large building with high vaulted ceilings and lots of windows throughout. It reminds me a lot of a conservatory or a greenhouse, to be honest. This place also is right off of Main Street, on the other side of it from the Plaza; we even got to see bits of the Fantasy parade through the windows.
We were visited by Pooh and the whole gang, and we got a bunch of pictures. Tigger was especially friendly, and purred at one point. I’m not entirely sure if that was in-character, or if he really “liked” us. Either way, we got some good pictures, and a birthday anniversary card!
The food was pretty good for a buffet, and I went up for seconds and thirds. Much better than our first buffet at 1900 Park Fare, to be sure. Still not quite as good quality as other table-service places, but still mighty tasty, and the character dining was worth it.
One last meal at Sassagoula (to use up a last quick-service meal) of a quesadilla (a bit disappointing, unfortunately), a Mickey brownie (quite a bit better than the quesadilla; we brought it home to have after the trip and extend things out a little), and a hummus cup (Julie was hooked at this point).
