Escaping the Snow - Part 3

[faline]

Travelers :
Dear Daughter
Me

Date: February 11, 2010, Friday

Plan for the Day:
Magic Kingdom with lunch at the Plaza and dinner at O’Hana’s

How the Day Went:
It took me a while to fall asleep and I woke up a few times during the night. I like my room to be really dark but, even with the curtains closed there was a significant amount of light coming from the central courtyard. I woke up around 6 and couldn’t really get back to sleep. I finally grabbed my book and read a couple of chapters. I was in the shower around 7. By time I got out of the shower, I heard the phone ringing with our wake up call. I let it ring a bit in the hopes it would get Carolyn going. She said she never heard it but might have already been in the shower.

I make coffee and we get ready to start our day. Once ready, we head to the first floor and out the door. As we are walking towards the Magic Kingdom, we hear the music from the park opening ceremony. It looks busy at the turnstyles but once we get into the park, we find it practically empty.

It’s overcast and quite chilly but I’m okay with pants, a long sleeved top and a sweatshirt. Carolyn was expecting it to be warmer so she’s wearing a dress and a long sleeved sweater. She’s cold. Thus we stick to mainly indoor rides.

As we walk up Main Street, we encounter the Mayor and exchange pleasantries. A cast member along the street offers me a Mickey sticker which I take and affix to my sweatshirt.
First up is Peter Pan’s Flight. We take in PhilharMagic and It’s A Small World. I’m not so sure I like the new queue set-up. After so many years of coming in the other way, this feels quite backwards to me – even the process of walking along the back of the clock as you enter the ride seems wrong. Still, we enjoy our ride. We visit the Haunted Mansion where the stretching room is not at all full. As I talk along with the narration, the cast member appears in front of me, turns to me and says “Karaoke night is Tuesday”. We amble over to Pirates (the lack of people allows us to do so). Carolyn is hungry and wants a snack. I choose a banana and she decides she’ll have a bag of cheese curls. She doesn’t eat many and says they are gross. I try a couple and have to agree they are not very tasty. We glance at the Jungle Cruise but it has quite a long wait so we pass on by. We visit Snow White’s Scary Adventures – sort of a farewell trip though I’m not sure when it is slated to close. Winnie the Pooh shows a 30 minute wait but, where are the fast passes? Oh, they’re way back – over by Philharmagic. Where’s the sense in that? We decide not to backtrack and instead get on line for Buzz Lightyear. Here is where something amazing happens. I get on board and tell Carolyn I always get a lousy score on this. But wait, before I am out of the first room, my score exceeds 100,000!!!! I exit the ride with a score of 159,000 points! Simply amazing! I tell Carolyn she needs to be my witness as her father will NEVER believe I got such a score on Buzz Lightyear!

We walk over and get fast passes for Space Mountain and then head to the Plaza Restaurant for our luncheon reservation. We’re seated right next to the entrance of the kitchen which is a tad bit annoying but, I guess, someone needs to end up sitting there! Carolyn has the chicken sandwich with fries – along with a coke. I have a burger with chips and a vanilla milkshake. The waitress warns me to use my spoon to pour the rest and I do but sill, I manage to overdo and drown the rest of my burger with milkshake - can't say I wasn't warned!

While we are dining the Mayor enters and presents a little girl named Jordan with a ribbon and certificate as a very important person. Pictures are taken. It’s very cute! He announces the votes were counted twice because it's Florida. During the pictures, the little girl poses a la Richard Nixon with two hands raised in "vees". The Mayor announces "they were only allegations"! Very funny and very cute! Jordan is clearly in her element!

After lunch, we secure Winnie fast passes and then use our Space Mountain fast passes. We visit Monsters Inc and then use our Winnie fast passes.

Heading back towards our resort, we spend some time browsing the shops along Main Street. I find a cook book I don’t yet own so it will come home with me. Carolyn finds a t-shirt and a scarf she needs. Purchases in hand, we walk back to Bay Lake Tower.
Over the last hour or so, the clouds had been showing breaks. As we walk home, the sun comes out and it feels much warmer than it did earlier in the day!

I had meant to empty the ice tray in the refrigerator and refill it before I left this morning but forgot to do that so I take the ice bucket down the hall and fill it up. Back in the room, I dump it into the container in the freezer and then look a little more carefully. Goodness sakes! We’ve got an ice maker in the freezer! All I had needed to do was to turn it on!

It’s time to put our feet up for a bit before we head back out. I suspect Carolyn is taking a nap while I catch up on my trip notes.
Around 5, we head out the door. First stop, the shops at the Contemporary. We eye some stuff we’re interested in and then board the monorail to the Poly. Carolyn buys a stuffed toy for her fur baby and we are lucky enough to find a place to sit in the lounge. I check in at O’Hana’s and am given a pager. We order drinks while we wait. The server asks Carolyn for her id (She is well beyond the age where it is legal for her to drink). She says she has not been asked in quite some time but the server who asked for her I.D. has made her night.

Our drinks are just delivered as our pager goes off. Our server tells us he’ll catch up with us after we’re seated so we head into the restaurant.

When the salad is delivered, we remember Carolyn’s food allergy. Soon, our table is visited by the chef and it is decided the only issue is the salad dressing so she receives a salad with an alternative dressing. Our server from the lounge finds us. For Christmas, I had gotten Carolyn the Drink Around the World and the Drink Around the Monorail cards. She asks the server to sign off on having had a drink at Tambu Lounge. He is intrigued by the card, says he had never seen one before, and asks if he can borrow it briefly. He goes away and a short time later, returns with the bartender. They both declare the card “cool”. A short while later, our lounge server visits us again to recommend that we also try out Crockett’s Tavern at Fort Wilderness. We tell him we are very familiar with the establishment with our first trip, many years ago, in a tent at Fort Wilderness.

After the salad, the food keeps coming and comes quickly. There are chicken wings and noodles, shrimp, pork, chicken, and steak. We are stuffed and then comes the dessert which is quite delicious but we can barely stuff a couple of mouthfuls in!

I find a voice mail on my cell phone. Gene had called this morning but I know the message wasn’t delivered until recently. In the voice mail, he tells me the temperature at home this morning was 1 degree!

Dinner finished, we check out the shops downstairs where I buy a top. I ask Carolyn if she’d like to go to the Grand Floridian or continue on to the Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks. She says she’d like to see the Grand Floridian so we disembark the monorail there. By time, we get to Mizner’s, it’s 7:30 and, if we get a drink to go, we can head downstairs to see the fireworks at 8. When I tell our server our plan, she tells me she can’t serve us, we have to place our order at the bar as it’s a “rule”. When we get the bar, the bartender is trying to assist another woman with a purchase and tells the server to go ahead and ring us up. She tells the bartender she’s already told us she can’t. The bartender runs off to take care of something for the other woman. I decide to head over to Citrico’s. I tell Carolyn that bar is usually never busy and I always forget it’s there. Well, tonight, the Citrico’s bar is hopping. It’s about 5 minutes before the bartender pays any attention to us. When we tell him what we want, he says he doesn’t have “to go” cups but Mizner’s does and we must have missed that location. I say we didn’t miss it but they didn’t want to wait on us. He says, never mind, he’ll just give us glasses and we can take them – and he does!

Drinks in hand, we walk down to the dock and take a seat on a bench. It’s rather chilly this evening. Still, the fireworks are worth it! By time we walk back to the main building, the drinks are gone and we return the glasses to Citrico’s. The bartender seems surprised we brought them back (even though we had said we would) and proclaims we are “sweet” for having done so.

We head to the monorail. The Magic Kingdom closing rush is on and, when we stop at that station, our car fills past full with folks trying to get “home”. Several times, our monorail stops between the Magic Kingdom and the Contemporary. Each time, the operator comes on the PA system to ask folks to not lean against the doors. The third of fourth time we stop, she says we keep stopping because folks continue to lean on the door and they should not do that if they want to get to where they are going. The last time this happens is just as we are entering the Contemporary station. We finally arrive but we are seated in the corner opposite the door and now have to thread our ways through the mass of folks in the car in order to disembark.

Carolyn makes a purchase in the store before we head across the bridge and back to our home. It’s still fairly early in the evening but we have walked more than 4 miles today and I, for one, am tired!

[Suz36]

Your stories about counting the votes twice and karaoke night made me giggle! I can so picture the HM CM saying that to you with a completely straight face!

Talking about the Tambu Lounge makes me thirsty for a Lapu Lapu! I'm remembering a promise my DH made to make me one at home - I need to go remind him of that!!

[DisneyorBust]

I certainly enjoyed reading about your first full day in the "World"! It sounds like you and your daughter had a great time together, thanks for sharing it with us.

[mouseketeer mom]

The mother daughter trip sounds wonderful I hope to have alone time with my oldest when she is in WDW for the Career Start program in a year and a half! I'm looking forward to reading more!

[yjgirl32]

Sounds like a great trip! I love Ohanas.

[pdrlkr]

Thanks for the Report!

[PrettyMinnie]

That was so nice of the bartender to give you glasses! Great day!

[Tigerinvestigator]

Thanks again. I have never heard that line in the HM. That is hilarious. Did he do it in the usual solemn face and voice?

[Beach Club Babe]

What a wonderful day! Congrats on your Buzz score! I doubt I will ever hit that!

[faline]

Originally Posted by Tigerinvestigator

Thanks again. I have never heard that line in the HM. That is hilarious. Did he do it in the usual solemn face and voice?

Absolutely! And, of course, that made it even funnier!

[faline]

Originally Posted by Beach Club Babe

Congrats on your Buzz score! I doubt I will ever hit that!

I never thought I would either! And the funny thing is, I got an even better score on this trip!

[KylesMom]

What a wonderful first day with Carolyn, Linda. You guys had a great mix of park and resort time! I bet your daughter got a kick out of the Crockett's Tavern reference - and getting carded.

So glad that things ended on a high note (with the exception of the monorail's unexpected stops). I bet you'll sleep good tonight!

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

What a great day...I love the HM castmember comments

[Joannelet]

congrats on your buzz lightyear score!
I also loved the HM cast member comment. I would have told him I will be back for karoake night!
That is funny that your daughter got carded. I still get carded and I'm 34 years old I am told I look like I'm 16. LOL My sister loves making fun of me
Great report!

[buzznwoodysmom]

100% agree with you about It's a Small World. We saw it this way for the first time in Oct., I think, and it felt so odd, and didn't "flow" at all.

Your first full day sounded wonderful.

[Melanie]

You found a big target on Buzz!

What a full day! It's definitely been chilly down this way so I know how your daughter felt.

[vizsla]

Thanks for the report.

[princessgirls]

Linda,

What a nice day you enjoyed with Carolyn! High score on buzz and all!!

Glad you ladies are having fun!

Julie

[Magic Smiles]

Thanks for the trip reports. I am really enjoying them. Where do you get the Drink Around the World and the Drink Around the Monorail cards? Sounds like it could be fun!

[faline]

I ordered them online. I suspect you'll find the site if you google it.