Bay Lake Tower and the Great Lockout
My husband and I spent several nights at Bay Lake Tower this week. Typically, weather in the middle of October is quite nice with highs in the 80s, not much rain, and lower humidity. Well, we didn't have any rain while we were there so that was nice but temperatures are still running above normal with daily highs in the 90s and feel like temps in the low 100s - so very hot!!!
We drove over early on Sunday morning. I received a message saying our room was not quite ready yet which I expected so we parked our car in the Bay Lake Tower parking lot and headed over to Contempo Cafe for coffee and breakfast sandwiches. From there, we monorailed over to the Magic Kingdom. I had a fastpass for the speedway but was able to change that to the Jungle Cruise. Our other fastpasses were for Peter Pan and Big Thunder Mountain. We were also able to visit the Haunted Mansion, Pirates, the People Mover and Monsters Inc. By this time, we were both quite hot so decided we would go over to the Grand Floridian for some refreshments and, hopefully, a flatbread. We ordered drinks at Mizner's - then discovered that food wasn't served at this location until 4:30 pm and we still an hour and a half shy of that. I planned to finish our drinks and head to the quick service location for something to eat but we got the message that our room was ready so headed directly back to Bay Lake Tower. Once there, we snacked on some chips and dip we had brought with us and got setttled into our room. We were on the 11th floor with a view over Bay Lake towards Epcot and Disney Studios. We headed down to the pool but I found the pool water to be too cool for my liking so we did spend some time in the hot tub. Back in the room, we changed and decided to head over to the Wave for dinner. We didn't have reservations so just dined at the bar. We both had steaks which were quite good. After dinner, we headed over to Top of the World. It was a party night so fireworks weren't scheduled until 10:15. I was tired and not planning to stay for the fireworks but we got talking with another couple there and, by time we ended the conversation, we were so close to fireworks time, we stayed for them. I'm glad we did!!
Monday was slated to be our Epcot day. The standby line for Soarin' was really short when we arrived so we went through the standby line. By time we finished our ride, my fastpass time had opened up so we did it again. We also did our fastpass for Living with the Land. We had a fastpass for Test Track but didn't stay in the park long enough to use it. We had decided to have lunch at Rose n Crown so headed over there. We didn't have reservations but didn't have any problem getting seated. We enjoyed our fish and chips and then wandered around World Showcase. By this time we were hot and cranky so returned back to our room for some air conditioning and relaxation. Once again, we went to the hot tub for a little while. For dinner, we boated over to Wilderness Lodge and went to Geyser Point where we had sandwiches for dinner - chicken for me; turkey for my husband. We some some of the fireworks at Disney Studios and Epcot from our balcony and then walked down the hall to see the last of the Magic Kingdom fireworks (We didn't have a view of the fireworks from our room).
On Tuesday morning, we headed over to Animal Kingdom. We visited Navi River (fastpass), walked the gorilla trail, and did the Safari (fastpass). We also had fastpasses for Expedition Everest but opted to go to lunch instead at Yak & Yeti. We didn't have any problem getting seated when we arrived (no ressies) but, when we left, the line was out the door. We kept lunch light - sharing pot stickers and a noodle entree. It was very hot out again so we did not linger in Animal Kingdom but returned to our room for some refreshing air conditioning. This evening, I had made reservations for Citricos so we went over there for our dinner. We both had the steak which was delicious. We opted for chocolate tortes for dessert but mine was way overcooked and like cement. While I ate the ice cream, fruit and chocolate crown, I couldn't eat the torte. Our waitress offered to bring another which I declined so she removed the charge from our bill. After dinner, we went over to Top of the World and watched the party fireworks.
Wednesday was originally scheduled to be a Disney Studios day. I have still not been able to secure a fastpass for the Slinky Dog ride. Plus, I had been able to book a culinary demonstration on this day so we opted to just go to Epcot instead of Disney Studios. We started our day sharing a breakfast sandwich at Contempo Cafe. Once at Epcot, we went to the Nemo ride at the Living Seas and also did the Turtle Talk show. With a little time still left before our culinary demonstration, we went over to the vacation club lounge and hung out there for a bit. We arrived at the Festival Center a little early so we watched the end of the beverage demonstration that was going on prior to our culinary experience. Our chef was Lauren Newman from the Crystal Palace who demonstrated a Seared Scallop Taco with Pickled Slaw and an Avacado Jalapeno Sauce. I was afraid it would be a bit too spicy for my taste but, clearly the samples, had been toned down. My scallop had a hint of heat but that was all. It was delicious!!
Back at our room, we headed to the hot tub for a bit and then opted to get burgers at the Wave bar for dinner. After dinner, we went to Top of the World to watch the fireworks.
Now - here comes the great lockout -
Back in our room, I decided to have a drink while enjoying the lovely night on our balcony. My husband went off to get some ice from the ice machine. After a while, I was beginning to wonder why he hadn't returned. I was going to text him but decided I had better check to see if he had taken his phone with him - he often forgets it. I went into the room. His phone was sitting there so texting him was out. I opened the door to the hallway and saw our bucket of ice sitting right next to the door but no husband. Taking the ice bucket in, I now noticed that my husband had not taken his wallet and had also removed and left his magic band in the room which meant he had no way to get back into the room and I, of course, would not have heard him knocking from the balcony. I figured he would try to get my attention from below so I went back out to the balcony and looked down. No husband. I was now traveling from hallway to balcony because, if I was in the room and he was trying to get my attention from below, I wouldn't see him and if he was in the hallway and I was on the balcony, I wouldn't hear him. After a few minutes of roaming back and forth, he appeared in the hallway and I was able to let him into the room. We had a good laugh at ourselves!!
On Thursday morning, we had fastpasses for the 7 Dwarves ride but decided to not go into a park but to just pack up and head home. That worked out for the best because, by the end of the day, I had come down with a nasty head cold which is still with me!! (I think that might also be why I wasn't at my perkiest during our time at Disney. It was still fun - just really low key).
