Magic Kindom -- and a special tour

Magic Kindom -- and a special tour

Some folks think the Magic Kingdom is the best of the Disney theme parks. I tend to agree. I think it is the castle in the middle with all the magic it brings. If you are a baby boomer, you grew up watching Walt Disney on TV and saw the unveiling of Disneyland and then the plans he had for Disneyworld. Hubby and I went to the Magic Kingdom twice for this vacation. The first time we went on the "other" very cold day in central Fla. I'm not kidding we set a record for that day for low temperature of 32. It isn't cold compared to other sections of the country but 32 in Florida is COLD! We got to the park early and it wasn't very crowded, probably because the day before it was cold and folks were waiting a bit for it to warm up. When the park opened we headed immediately to Tomorrowland and had the very first car on Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. It is a ride and a game where you try to destroy the evil Emperor Zurg. From there we had a two minute wait to get on Space Mountain and then headed over to Fantasyland to ride the Winnie the Pooh ride. This ride is always crowded so I wanted to go since we've never waited before for it. This was the warm up for our lunch rendezvous with Tigger, Pooh, Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore.

Our second visit was the last day of our stay. By then it was warming up and would get into the 70's. I had scheduled us for the Keys to the Kingdom tour. We began at 9:30 and finished up about 3:30. We had special radio frequency earpieces to wear so we could hear our guide amongst the crowds. We stared by introducing ourselves and then dove in with a bit of history that is displayed on the windows of the shops on Main Street USA. We went towards Adventureland and got a special Kristin Pass ride and were able to cut in front of everyone for a special tour of the Jungle Cruise. Kristin was our guide and she was making a joke about the Fast Pass, a way for customers to sort of save a place in line if it is too crowded and then come back at a designated time. The Kristen Pass was even better since we had no waiting at all. If you've ridden the Jungle Cruise you know all the guides have this list of the corniest jokes in the world. The Kristin ride eliminated just about all of them and gave us a behind the scenes tour instead of the background of the ride and the "hidden" features.

From there we continued through Adventureland to Frontierland and did a bit of behind the scenes touring. Kristen mentioned a special feature of the Enchanted Tike room and recommened the Dole snack hut near the Jungle Cruise as a great place to get some soft serve pineapple ice cream (hubby and I went back after the tour was over and it was great!)  After promising not to take photos or record anything behind the scened we went behind a fence near the railroad crossing in Adventureland to see where some of the floats reside and also viewed the huge holding tank for the water in Splash Mountain. Every night they drain all the water and then find all the things people loose on that ride. From there we went to Liberty Square. Our lunch at the Harbour House was waiting when we arrived. We had a separate eating area and the lunches we ordered at the beginning of the tour were already on tables for us.

After lunch we got a review of some background Kristen had given us on the Haunted Mansion. Again we got a Kristen Pass and entered the ride through the servants quarters near the exit and were instructed to look for "hidden Mickey's and a Donald". I found all but one.

After we gathered our group we exited Liberty Square getting some more background as we walked and then went into a door and down an elevator and entered the tunnels or as they call them in Disney lingo "utilidors" for utility corridors. Since the water table is so high the Magic Kingdom is actually built one story taller than the rest of the surrounding area thus allowing the designers to put utility things out of the view of the public. You don't see garbage being collected. You don't see service trucks or things like that, it is all under you, keeping the magic alive. All the normal things you'd see in a work are are there, forklifts, bulletin boards, safety signs and updates to park happenings so the cast members are all on the same sheet of music. While we were there we saw a short video on how the cast members get their laundry serviced. We left via another elevator and were back to our starting point.

All in all it was a great tour. I don't think it spoiled the magic for me at all but really enhanced my impresssion of the folks that designed this great escape from the daily grind to the most magical place in the world.

 

Until my next post,

Diane

Downtown Disney and Animal Kingdom

Here's part two of three of the before Christmas trip hubby and I took to Disneyworld. To me no trip to Disney is complete without strolling around Downtown Disney and maybe having a meal or two. Hubby and I ate there the day we arrived (Raglan Road and Irish Pub) and the last night we were there (Wolfgang Puck's). We also headed over there one morning before going out to Epcot. Our hotel (Port Orleans Riverside) was a short shuttle boat ride away, or you could take the bus. On that day I splurged and used one the snack entitlements we had with our meal plan and got a deep fried snickers bar from Cookes of Dublin. Downtown Disney has some great shops with more than Disney memorabilia.

Disney has had this promotion for at least two years where they give you a button so you can tell the world what you are celebrating. Some pins are for 1st Visit or Happy Anniversary. I had a pin for Happy Birthday. I wore it all week and really stretched out the number of times people said "Happy Birthday" to me. Almost all the staff does and so do many other customers. It is a great ice breaker when you are standing in line too. Just about every table service meal presented me with an extra desert or added a special little something to the existing desert. Note the way Wolfgang puck did in with my Key Lime Pie --they wrote it in chocolate.

The first two days of our vacation were quite cold but it was warming up the day we went to Animal Kingdom. We ate a breakfast buffet at the Tusker house in the Africa section of the park. It was better than I thought it would be and we got some one on one with Donald Duck and friends. Hubby found a great place for me to take some photos during the parade and we stayed longer than I thought. All in all a great day!

Until my next post,
Diane

Disney Epcot and Hollywood Studios

As I mentioned in a post a few days ago, hubby and I went out to Disneyworld before Christmas again. I know I'm a bad blogger for not having posted these immediately but the holidays snuck up on me and so did a cold that I fought off for a week or so. Also, we had that monster east coast storm....so that's why I'm late. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Anyway instead of posting a bunch of photos from each park I used this free program called Shape Collage. I first found out about this from another blog I read. It is pretty easy to use. If you want to be able to remove the watermark or use the finished product in Photoshop you will need to purchase either the personal or professional edition.

The first day we arrived it was very cold. We started the day at Epcot because we had lunch reservations at Le Chefs de France. If you look close you can see a little picture of Remi from the Pixar movie Ratatouille. It was so cold and windy that day that after lunch we headed over to Hollywood Studios since it is less exposed to the elements. Besides we had some friends to meet. Before we left I got an email from one of our old neighbors when we were in the USAF. They had gotten my early Christmas card where I mentioned we'd be going to Disney. We finally tracked them down by Mickey's Hat and then rode the Tower of Terror with them. Carol mentioned she thought it was just supposed to be her and her husband but when they arrived she discovered her husband had assembled the entire family together. Great surprise!

Some of the other photos in Epcot are towards the end of the trip when it warmed up so I've got less layers of clothing on.

Until my next post,

Diane

Good enough to eat 2010

Last year I made a gingerbread house after hubby and I returned from our before Christmas Disneyworld visit. Well we went again and here's the creation I made this year.

I purchased it from the Disney Beach Club resort on the first night we arrived. We had reservations at Raglin Road in Downtown Disney. After having a great meal we took one of the Disney buses to that resort and saw their edible carousel creation and bought a kit for me and one for my neighbor.

Here's the lobby of the Beach Club Resort.

Just in case you are inclined to make one yourself here's your shopping list:

Now maybe you aren't into carousels but you'd really like a little cabin in the woods or a summer cottage. Well how about getting the building plans for this:

This would be the day to use the SUV instead of the Mini Cooper to lug the groceries home to complete this creation:

That's all for today. I'll post some more Disney pictures in the next few days.

Until my next post,

Diane



Last day at Disney World

The last day of our 2009 Disney World vacation was spent at Epcot. There is a lot at this park. You could almost spend two days here, one at the technology side and another in the world showcase portion. Since we had been here three years ago we hit the things we really liked first in the technology side then went back to the hotel to pack and hit the pool one more time. Our favorites are Soarin' and Test Track. We hadn't ridden Mission Space before and we went for the full motion side instead of the "less intense" ride. We were both a bit dizzy after the ride and came to the conclusion that the days of motion simulators are kind of behind us. It is interesting since we know other former USAF flyers like us that don't like certain thrill rides. We headed back in the late afternoon to tour the world showcase and get dinner in the Mexican pavillion.

Here's some pictures of me with:

Stitch before the park opened

Donald, Mickey, Minnie and Goofy about to open the park (don't bother looking for me in this one)

Mickey

Pluto

Minnie

Goofy

Pooh and Tigger

Alice in Wonderland (a first for me)

Mary Poppins (another first)

Sleeping Beauty

Marie from the Aristocats (yet another first)

Snow White

We had a great time during our fourth stay with great weather. I love coming during the holiday season because it is cooler the crowds are smaller and the decorations really get you into the holiday spirit.

Until my next post,
Diane

Disney World...a day away from the parks

Today we decided to take a break from the parks at Disney World and did a bit of golfing instead, 18 holes as a matter of fact. OK so it was miniature golf but my score looked more like the real thing.

Before we hit the links we drove over to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for a great buffet breakfast. There was one day we didn't have reservations and we tried to get a character breakfast at the last minute but they were all sold out. A great guy named Adam that worked at the concierge desk in the Grand Floridian helped us the previous evening as we were admiring the decorations. He suggested we head over to Boma--a taste of Africa, for their buffet since we were looking for a buffet. What a great suggestion, the scenery was great both inside and out and so was the food.

Look at these decorations at the entrance to the rest rooms!

In our welcome package was a voucher for a free round at one of the miniature golf courses. We chose Fantasia Gardens since it was within walking distance of the Swan and Dolphin and would allow us to see their decorations. Hubby actually had a great round but like to ham it up for the camera!

The Swan didn't have much in the way of decorations but the Dolphin had a great Christmas tree made of white pointsetias and a neat train that went around the base.

We headed back to the room, took another swim and had a casual dinner and walked around Downtown Disney again where we saw Santa for the second time.

Until my next post,

Diane

The Magic Kingdom

This was the first time we paid in advance for the Disney dining plan. Before we'd just eat whenever and wherever and without reservations. When you only have a part of two is generally isn't a problem. On our last visit we did run into a problem. We were at Epcot and all the restaurants were booked so we at a one of the quick serve and it was terrible. The food was cold and tasteless. This time we decided to buy the dining plan in advance and make reservations. The plan we chose gave us one quick service meal, a restaurant style meal and one snack per person per day. It doesn't seem like much but each meal includes a dessert and hubby and I often share one. Also if you eat at a buffet you generally eat more. In the end I think it was worth it and I do it again. I generally ordered fish which can often be the most expensive things on the menu.

On our third day at Disney World we had a late start on purpose. We decided to take it easy in the morning. The hot Florida sun was getting to us so we took a swim in the morning and made it to the Magic Kingdom in time to take a train ride around the park and then meet Tigger and friends for lunch at the Crystal Palace. It is really called Pooh and friends but Tigger is my favorite character.

Here's some photos of me with:

Tigger

Piglet

Eyore

Lilo and Stitch

Woody and Jessie

In the evening we left and tried to watch the fireworks from the observation tower at the Contemporary Resort but a lot of other folks had the same idea so we couldn't even get close. Then we headed over to the Grand Floridian to see their life size gingerbread house.

Until my next post,

Diane

Disney's Animal Kingdom

The second day of our Disney World vacation was spent at Animal Kindom in the day and then off Germany in Epcot for dinner. The thrilling ride at Animal Kingdom is the Expedition Everst roller coaster but the best part for me is the Safari ride in Africa and the walk through Asia.

Here's some photos of me with:

Rafiki of the Lion King

Jiminy Cricket

Terk from Tarzan

Goofy and Pluto

Pooh

Tigger

Donald and Daisy Duck

Thumper and Miss Bunny (this was the first time I've ever seen them at a theme park).

After dinner we walked outside Epcot and towards the Yacht and Beach club. Inside their lobby was a great carousel horse made of gingerbread and chocolate. That's where I got the kit to make mine.

Until my next post,
Diane

As promised...finally Disney World Photos

It has been about three weeks and I'm finally presenting you with some more photos of Disney World. I'm a character freek, I love hunting these folks out and posing with them. Maybe the characters like it too since I'm pretty quick and just jump in there and pose for the photos. If you haven't been to Disney World in a while they have they have a way for you to get photos from them. They have photographers stationed at various locations in all of the parks and Downtown Disney too armed with digital SLR's. They give you a photopass card and everytime you see one of their photographers you hand them your card and they scan it and take your photos. You can go on a special website and see your photos and apply tailored backgrounds and email them to friends and family. There is no obligation to purchase anything. It's a great deal if you 1)forgot your camera, 2)forgot to charge your camera battery (I heard that in line at Animal Kingdom), 3)missed that extra special shot because someone wasn't looking at the camera or other reasons.

All of these photos were taken at Disney's Hollywood Studios where we spent our first day. The two great thrill rides there are the Rock and Rollercoaster and the Tower of Terror. The newest great attraction is called Toy Story Mania where you play old style carnival games with a Toy Story character feel against the person riding in your vechicle. Here's some photos of me with:

Buzz Lightyear and Woody from the Toy Story movies

Mickey as the sorcerer from Fantasia

Russel and Carl from UP

Mike and Sulley from Monsters Inc.

Elasticgirl and Mr. Incredible

Until my next post,
Diane

All I want for Christmas is... for my kitty to be well

"They" say that the time between after Thanksgiving and before Christmas is the slowest time of the year at Disney World. When you are down there then all the parks have extra special decorations and many of the hotels go all out with their decorations. At certain parks some of the characters have holiday garb on and  Santa is available to visit. Hubby and I were fortunate enought to visit Santa not once but twice.

We saw him at the Magic Kingdom. While waiting we could view the afternoon parade and stay out of the sun.

We also saw him at Downtown Disney and didn't have to wait behind a bunch of kids who thought we were crazy.

Both times I put in a request for a new Dell XPS 9000 with a dedicated audio and video card. Now that I'm back nursing my kitty from whatever he has I would have wished for a healthy cat instead.

Until my next post,
Diane