Christmas 2010 Trip to WDW: POR

[NaCler]

Is someone starting up the Subsonic All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meet-up here?

Yet another one you can sign me up for!

[mindflipper]

We're straying a bit here...

Hey, H! When do we get the next chapter?

[Amy]

Is someone starting up the Subsonic All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meet-up here?

Yet another one you can sign me up for!

Can I be the mascot?!

[NaCler]

Can I be the mascot?!

Only if we can dangle you off the side of a building! Sorry, you set it up so well...

mf - Sorry to get off topic... I really don't want to take any focus away from WWDRH's report. I need to go back and comment on his Kid-Free Day at EPCOT and his latest Resort hopping day...

[Amy]

Can I be the mascot?!

Only if we can dangle you off the side of a building! Sorry, you set it up so well...
mf - Sorry to get off topic... I really don't want to take any focus away from WWDRH's report. I need to go back and comment on his Kid-Free Day at EPCOT and his latest Resort hopping day...

Yes, you may! I am not afraid of heights at all ~ and just think of the photos I can take to share
We are simply waiting patiently for WWTRH's next installment

[wewantsdaredhead]

Can I be the mascot?!

Only if we can dangle you off the side of a building! Sorry, you set it up so well...
mf - Sorry to get off topic... I really don't want to take any focus away from WWDRH's report. I need to go back and comment on his Kid-Free Day at EPCOT and his latest Resort hopping day...

Yes, you may! I am not afraid of heights at all ~ and just think of the photos I can take to share
We are simply waiting patiently for WWTRH's next installment

Sorry-everyone! I had a meeting out of town last week (for work) but I should have the next installment complete today.
Much like my trip..I don't want this trip report to end...

As far as an "All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meetup" count me in!--the only problem being that the very name excludes Amy and F1gment...
as well as some other Marauders

Thank you sir... Also, it would make it easier for you to swing by and pick me up if you ever have another crazy guy weekend like you did before!

You can count on that!!! We drove right through there (Jax) on our road trip...

Hi Henry... just finished your last installments...great trip report, like the others I have laughed along with you, traveled along and enjoyed the trip.... 3 dole whips aren't too many, so sorry that you had to be just in spirit with the "earlier group" sure we would have all enjoyed being together, you do sound like one of "them"... I haven't been around long enough to qualify for any mischief making, (of course not that I would, you understand....) was so glad to see the photo of Figment, which somehow I missed in the exhibit...

Don't worry--you will see him next time
Thanks for reading along--and thanks for calling me one of "them" it really means a lot!

[mindflipper]

Hi Henry... just finished your last installments...great trip report, like the others I have laughed along with you, traveled along and enjoyed the trip.... 3 dole whips aren't too many, so sorry that you had to be just in spirit with the "earlier group" sure we would have all enjoyed being together, you do sound like one of "them"... I haven't been around long enough to qualify for any mischief making, (of course not that I would, you understand....) was so glad to see the photo of Figment, which somehow I missed in the exhibit...

Don't worry--you will see him next time
Thanks for reading along--and thanks for calling me one of "them" it really means a lot!

Really? You want to be branded as a Mayhem Marauder? You got such a good reputation going for you, H! As I said in another topic:

The Mayhem Marauder title is like gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe: once you got it, it's very hard to rid of it.

[Amy]

...As far as an "All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meetup" count me in!--the only problem being that the very name excludes Amy and F1gment...as well as some other Marauders ...

Ah, that's ok, I understand guys need their "quality time" with their bros
And maybe we ladies will just have to have a All-Gals Wild and Crazy Weekend Meetup sometime

[mindflipper]

...As far as an "All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meetup" count me in!--the only problem being that the very name excludes Amy and F1gment...as well as some other Marauders ...

Ah, that's ok, I understand guys need their "quality time" with their bros
And maybe we ladies will just have to have a All-Gals Wild and Crazy Weekend Meetup sometime

If I remember right, wewantsdaredhead and some guys he knew did a day trip from NC to Orlando, visited WDW, and then drove back - without staying overnight! We were joking about him doing that again (I wouldn't!). Best to do WDW leisurely, not in a rush. And I would prefer to do another meet-up like Dec 4th - open to all genders and ages!

[wewantsdaredhead]

...As far as an "All-Guys Crazy Weekend Meetup" count me in!--the only problem being that the very name excludes Amy and F1gment...as well as some other Marauders ...

Ah, that's ok, I understand guys need their "quality time" with their bros
And maybe we ladies will just have to have a All-Gals Wild and Crazy Weekend Meetup sometime

If I remember right, wewantsdaredhead and some guys he knew did a day trip from NC to Orlando, visited WDW, and then drove back - without staying overnight! We were joking about him doing that again (I wouldn't!). Best to do WDW leisurely, not in a rush. And I would prefer to do another meet-up like Dec 4th - open to all genders and ages!

We only did that because we just didnt have the time...My favorite way to see WDW is just like my wife did at Epcot: Nice and slow with a beer in hand
And, yes, I would love to be labeled a Marauder gum on my shoe and all

[mindflipper]

And, yes, I would love to be labeled a Marauder gum on my shoe and all

Properly warned ye be, says I! Welcome aboard, H! The more the merrier!

[wewantsdaredhead]

DAY SIX: 12/24/2010 CHRISTMAS EVE

The Plan: AK in the AM and Epcot in the PM. ADR @ Le Cellier for 11:30

Actual:

The most unusual of the Christmas Trees we saw all week…


I knew we would be pressed for time to see a few things in AK and still get over to Epcot in time for our ADR at 11:30, so we just wanted to hit a few high spots and roll. We decided to go right over and ride EE standby and then hit Dinosaur! We zipped right onto EE until we got to the actual ride vehicle when they told us the ride was closed and to get FP and come back later. What? Uh-oh. This is my older son’s favorite ride at all of Disney—we had to stay around until it was opened back up.
So we grabbed FP’s (for 20 mins later!) and headed to D! to see Ms. Cosby.
On the way the kids wanted to hit the Primeval Whirl and Mom rode with them—but not me


D! was a walk-on—it was still very early…

I was really enjoying how everywhere (and I mean everywhere!) you looked, there were Christmas Decorations…


And one of the Forbidden Mountain…


We decided to walk alllll the way over and go on Kilimanjaro Safari and then walk allllll the way back to see if Everest was open. KS was a 5 min wait, so we boarded ‘Simba-1’ and chased away some pesky poachers. It was one of the best safaris I had been on—lots of animals out. I got some good pics.




EE was open and we got right on with our FP---things were falling into place. My wife wanted to use one of her 20% off merchandise coupons, so they went into the store while I looked for a cup of coffee. I turned around and she was still standing there, “Let’s go over to Epcot.” Was something wrong—what the heck just happened? Nothing, she was just ready to go. No ITTBAB? No. Ahhh, well. It was 10:00 and we were headed to Epcot.
We went into the park and my wife announced she was hitting Mouse Gear and didn’t care what we did. I was beginning to see why we left AK—she wanted to shop at her favorite store on property!
I sent Son #1 over to Soarin` for FP while I tried to keep my credit card balance reasonably low. She only did minor damage and we had FP’s for 4:15-perfect.
We goofed around a little bit and tried on some hats—my wife was really digging the Chip and Dale hat. I regret that I did not buy it for her—let that be a lesson to you kids! (I have been looking for it on disneyparks.com, but with no luck )



We hit Club Cool for another round of Beverly, but my wife was not having it. We tried all the other ones for the umpteenth time. (Free soda? What’s not to love?!)

By now it was time to check-in to one of my most anticipated meals. I hoped I was not overhyping it and setting a standard they could never live up to…

Almost there!!!


Son #2 and his favorite pastime—texting…



We were first seating, so we got to hear them sing, “O Canada.” I was ready for some steak! He went through the spiel that I would hear about 10 more times that day (the bread represents three different areas of Canada…each area of Le Cellier represented one of the different provinces of Canada (funny they all look the same to me???) etc…). I opted for the NY Strip, as did my wife. The kids went with the price fixe menu because they said they couldn’t eat a steak at 11:30—kids!!! But it actually worked out because they ordered the beer cheese soup and didn’t eat it, so my wife and I got to taste it---very good! I ordered a La Fin du Monde beer while my wife had the Moosehead. Yummy!
The meals were excellent—the best I’ve had this trip…now, having said that, would I use two credits there in the future? Probably not. It was good, but it wasn’t that good, ya know?? I am glad I persisted (thanks to a few of you) and got the ADR, but with the change to a Signature Restaurant, it will probably be the last time we visit…with kids at least. We’ll see.
I ordered the frozen wine fruit dessert (the exact name escapes me) and it was super and my wife had the S’mores. Son #2 had the “Mousse” and for the life of me I cannot think of what Son #1 had…

Son #2 and the obligatory “Mousse” picture:


We rolled out of there full and ready to hit Epcot on our last full day—always a sad day
In all my trips, I never noticed the maple leafs on the fence…


My kids had some Christmas money burning a hole in their pocket, so we headed to the UK so they could get some Beatles items they had been eyeing up.

Whenever I see “old school Epcot font” it always reminds me of the Future Couple, so I snapped a shot from the queue…


We all went on SSE together and I got a classic picture of my face in “the future.” (with Son #1)


It was time for our siesta, so we bussed on back to POR. The kids were losing steam fast and I didn’t know if they would even come back later with us. It was about 1:30.
We had our FP for Soarin` (4:15) and we were armed with a QS meal because we had eaten a TS for lunch, so we headed back to Epcot at 4:00 with no kids. They opted for a hotel room and TV...I know, right?? Kids! But, in fairness, we had done a lot of walking and plus this way my wife and I might be able to re-live the magical night we had at Epcot earlier in the week.

While waiting at the bus stop, we spied some Skittles that someone had dropped—of course, we had a flashback to the bus ride “protein spill.” I don’t know if I will ever look at Skittles again without chuckling.


I bet I took 40 pictures of that ball:


We decided to make someone’s day by giving 2 of our 4 FP’s to some random couple. When we got to the line entrance and saw it was a 120 min wait, we knew someone would be thrilled to have them. The trick was finding a party of two—so many larger parties walked by. After a few minutes a younger couple walked into the standby line and I grabbed them and showed them my FP—“Yes, you can have them-- they are good for right now! Quizzical looks all around… BAM! We had hit a language barrier…
We finally convinced them to follow is into the FP line and it felt good, if not anti-climactic. Two hours of their day was just freed up and I don’t think they even realized it. Oh well.

Then there was the ride…

Somehow I got next to this guy that just could not stop talking. He felt compelled to comment and POINT about everything. He was very concerned that I was missing something and would point at it—most times across my face. Trust me, Gang—I saw everything thanks to this guy…Then he yelled out, “Oh man, SMELL THE LEMONS!” Lemons?? ?????
It totally ruined my Soarin` experience. But…like my wife said, at least I’ll always have the story to tell about this fool.

We wandered around the WS for a bit---I got a beer in Canada this time. The Candlelight Processional was just letting out, so it was a mob scene back there. They had a rope blocking traffic so the singers could get backstage (to the right of American Adventure, so to speak) and it was starting to back up. Some loud mouthed woman behind me began to get upset: “C’mon people you can do it, let’s go---move. Beep-beep.” I turned around and said, “They are blocking the way for the show to let out. No one can go anywhere.” She was undeterred and proceeded to push around me until, yes you guessed it—they stopped her at the rope.

My Bride at the American Adventure:


I was just about out of beer, so we hit up the Beer Cart in Germany and my wife asked the CM (who was from Germany) if he had ever heard of a beer made by a brewery that shares names with us. He had and was very excited to talk about it. In fact I felt guilty for holding up the line as he asked us if we were related, etc (we’re not that we know of) so we moved aside and continued our conversation some more. Very interesting! He really lit up when we asked him about that brewery, it was pretty cool.
Beer in hand we did a deep dive into the shops of Germany. My wife was looking for something to spend her hard earned money on, but just wasn’t sure what. We settled on an Oktoberfest T-Shirt and some beer mug-shaped glasses. I could have spent about $200 in that new Karamel Shop—wow that smells nice in there.
Yours truly modeling the beer mug glasses…


I took this in Germany especially for NaCler—I wanted to show him how the Duffy Bears were just flying off the shelves. They couldn’t re-stock them fast enough!


I was dying to have a brat (extra kraut for Amy ) and my wife wanted another pretzel, so we hit the Sommerfest and it turns out we could get the pretzel as a dessert for my brat (which was an entrée). Well, that worked out!

For Amy


When I sat down to pig out, I looked over and there was an older lady about to do the same…I got a kick out of her, so I snapped a picture. (I have no idea what the lady on the right is doing—smelling her phone maybe??)


Another round for the road and we were off counter-clockwise making some smaller stops here and there. I was having such a great time with my wife that I didn’t want it to end, so I made sure to stop at every little area and check some things out.
Then the kids called from the hotel…they were bored and hungry and I said, “Wow, if only there was a place that had something to do and some places to eat!” So, we decided we would head back and meet them at the QS place in POR. After all they did still have a QS meal for that day to use.
We strolled through Mouse Gear and some other places realizing we were enjoying our last night in the parks. We talked about going on SSE again, but passed it in favor of a photopass shot in front of the 'ball.'

She was trying to hide her beer


As we were loading onto the bus, we witnessed an apparent turf war. It seems that some families were cutting lines at the bus corrals. I didn’t know who were the Jets and who were the Sharks, but it was about to get ugly just as another bus rolled up and everyone calmed down. I tried to take a picture of the aftermath, but it didn’t come out.
We got back to POR about 8:30 and met the kids for some chow at the resort. The kids were well-rested and Mom and Dad had a Disney Glow…I’m sure of it….…and not just because of the beers.

Tomorrow: Christmas Day at MK!

[wewantsdaredhead]

The more the merrier!

I couldn't agree more...
Thanks!!!

[NaCler]

Again, no name—but I do remember she was from Bristol, England.

Are you sure it wasn't Bristol from England???

My wife told me after our trip was over that this was her most favorite day ever at WDW. It’s mine now too!!

That's how it all begins my friend. She has a few really good memories at Disney... then she becomes a pass holder. I'm glad you guys had some time away from the kids. It sounds terrible, but I would much rather go to Disney with only my wife... no kids.

[Amy]

Yay! Another awesome day! You are really cool parents to let your boys go back to the hotel if they want to just relax. I can't imagine anyone not wanting to spend every waking moment in the parks, but I bet it kept them a lot happier having some down time.
Love the giraffe and lion photos from your safari ~ the giraffe looks so pretty in the early morning sun, and the lion is just awesome!
Boy am I glad I don't like Skittles all that well
Thanks for thinking of me with the brat and sauerkraut I'm glad you went ahead and ate it there and didn't try to send it to me
Wow ~ Christmas at Disney That would be something