My original plan was 3 days in the Grand Cayman Islands then 4 days in Disney World. But the friend I was to be staying with in the Grand Caymans had to move back to Canada for some crazy complicated reasons around health care insurance and bureaucrazy a mere 30 days before my trip.
I was totally bummed for him, but rolled with it. Re-booked my flights, added 2 more nights to my trip which led to a hotel change and getting an extra ticket and giving up the Disney planning to a professional (which I loved in the end).
But here's day 1.
Jan 21: I actually started this day by going to work at 8:00 am (usually I start at 9)! Work I tell you! Was horribly antsy but did manage to get two big projects finished so I could really relax whilst on vacation. Left by 11:00am for the 2 hour drive to Santa Barbara. Parked the car in the extra cheap long term parking at the exact moment a shuttle pulled in to fetch passengers. There was no line to check-in and no line for security. So I just breezed through. Met a man who bore a remarkably striking resemblance to Owen Wilson. We ended up seated next to each other on the flight to LAX and chatted. He was headed to Cuba on an architectural history extended learning class. He had been all over the world with this educational focused travel company and he almost made me want to skip WDW and head to Cuba with him. But the Mouse won, even though I had my passport with me...maybe if he really had been Owen Wilson, but no.
Flight from LAX to Orlando was completely uneventful. Got lots of knitting done. And napped for awhile. Since I was a late re-book, my aisle seat preference was unavailable and I was booked into a middle seat. I explained to the gate agent in Santa Barbara that I have a long history of air sickness & claustrophobia and had eaten nothing but 2 peanut butter cookies for 24 hours in preparation for flying so I should be ok. But he would not hear of it and upgraded me for free to the bulkhead row. So it was like being in first class (only 2 seats rather than 3) but no under seat storage. Not a problem since I could check a bag for free. Woo!
Got my rental car and I'm sooooooo not a car woman. I own a 1997 Honda Civic that is about to flip 200,000 miles and I will own it til it dies in another 15 years or so. I just don't care that it's not stylish and that the front bumper has a huge crack in it, that the back bumper has a big dent, and the doors many a scratch. The engine is in great shape and I get fantastic gas mileage. I share all of that to make this point. I rented a Fiat and kinda fell in love with it. So stinking cute and wonderfully peppy.
And I could park it in the tiniest of spaces. I would buy one in a heartbeat if I had the spare cash.
Drove it without incident to my Vacation Club for the first few days: Hilton's Parc Soliel where I had a one bedroom suite. I requested a room on a high floor with a view of the Disney parks and was given it. First time staying at Parc Soliel, usually with the family we stay at the HGVC on International drive. I like the commute from Park Soliel better. The style of the rooms are more me at I-drive, but I can't complain about Parc Soliel. Elegant decor and the bathtub (which I forgot to photograph!) was totally cool. Filled from the ceiling.
Kitchen (which I barely used)
Dining Table (never dined at it, but did pile merchandise on it nightly)
Living Room
View from the balcony (lights indicate parks)
French doors to the bedroom
Bedroom
After some initial unpacking, I went in search of food. Can't remember what I got, but I brought it back to the hotel and ate it whilst watching the fireworks from my balcony. They were too far away for good photos and of course no audio at all, but I felt like my vacation had finally begun.
Coming soon, day 2: Animal Kingdom and my epic birthday dinner at Jiko.
