Beach Club Babe
09-01-2007, 01:15 PM
Cast Members:
Me (Heather)
DS (Matt)
DD#1 (Courtney)
DD#3 (Emily)
Thursday, August 16th, 2007
I think perhaps, that this was laziest day we have ever spent in WDW.
It was so lazy, that I did not even set a wake-up call! Still, I woke up at a reasonable hour, got ready, got the kids up, and had another breakfast in the room. We were out the door by 9:30 and heading for a quick shopping trip to Downtown Disney. We had only a short time here, so we would leave the heavier shopping until later. We went straight for WoD and it was so nice not to have to fight the crowds that you encounter at night! There was hardly anyone here! I do think, we will hit this again in the morning from now on! I was able to breeze through there in no time flat, picking up quite a bit of merchandise. At least I was able to get my 10% discount! Among the things selected, were the absolute perfect pair of earrings for Courtney and the ultimate gift for Ashleigh, a Captain Jack Sparrow towel. From there, it was over to check out Summer Sands and Team Mickey, I don't believe we got anything here at this time, but there's always later!
It was time to consider heading to Epcot, as we had a lunch ADR at Le Cellier. We decided to allow plenty of time to grab a bus, any bus, to a resort and another to Epcot. Of course, we decided to catch the 1st available bus. There was just one pulling in when we arrived at the bus stop. We did have plenty of time, so it did not matter that it one of the furthest away, the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The driver questioned us as to why we didn't wait for a closer bus, but I told her we were not in that much of a hurry. She must have taken that quite literally, as she maybe have been the slowest driver we've ever encountered. As we arrived at the AKL, there was a bus waiting to go to Epcot, so we had no wait.
This was the 1st time this trip, that we entered Epcot from the front, and it was a little more depressing to have to walk by Spaceship Earth and not being able to ride, no one more disappointed than Emily! She must have asked 100 times if she askd once, why she couldn't ride it?, why it was closed?, why do they have to change it?
We checked the wait board and found that Test Track was already out of fastpasses. Well that plan was down the tubes, instead we grabbed some for Soarin for 5:45. That was a little longer than I had planned to be in Epcot, but Courtney & Emily really wanted to ride, so we would stay. It was very apparent that the crowds had really picked up since the beginning of the week, no more so than when we went to ride Figment and the line was all the way to the door! The wait wasn't that bad, though.
We decided to start making our way towards Canada, and found ourselves checking in at the podium about 20 minutes early. It was OK though, since we were off of our feet and in air-conditioning. We were seated exactly on time at possibly the worst table in the restaurant. The table nearest the entryway. Literally, evryone who entered had pass our table. It did not bother me too much, as were about to have a delicious meal. Matt and I both selected the cheddar cheese soup and the open-faced steak sandwich. Courtney opted for the grilled chicken sandwich without mushrooms and substituted cream cheese mashed potatoes for the steak fries. I believe Emily went with a burger.
To begin, our waitress was very attentive and brought our breadsticks and drinks promptly. I think the breadsticks were gone in no time flat! Actually, so were the drinks, as were exceptionally thirsty. She brought refills immedately and again one more time before the meal arrived. Here's where things began to go down hill. Apparently, unbeknowst to us, our waitress was switched with another, and I thought she was just helping the other out. We had been waiting an inordinately long amount of time for our soups, that finally, our entrees had arrived before our soups. The waitress did not even realize, and I had to remind her that we not yet received them. She apologized and brought them out after 5 minutes or so. I was trying to be the good sport about it, as I really didn't care for having to try and eat both at once, but I did not plan on complaining. However, we were never to see either waitress again. She disappeared for quite a while emerging to take care of the tables to our side, but always careful to keep her back to us. Even when we said"excuse me" to ask for something she would ignore us. Apparently that 1st waitress was no longer handling our table, but we did no know that. The waitress who had taken over meanwhile, was leaning against the wall 2 feet from us, watching everything, but saying nothing. We ate both our appetizers and entrees, without so much as a drop of our drinks. I was growing annoyed and asked another server, if she could please get the manager. She gave us a look, that we dare speak to her, and went off without getting the manager. After we had finished, and about 10 minutes later, our "new' waitress came and asked if she could clear away some plates, to which I replied I'd rather have had the refills! About 10 more minutes passed, when she returned with refills! By this time I would have rather had the check! I really didn't want to get the manager, I have never once complained in any restaurant on WDW property. Unfortunately, thsi would have to be the first. I expalined to her how everything started off wonderfully, but went downhill. I was also sure to mention that the meals were absolutley delicious and there was absolutely no problem there, but the service was just too horrendous! She apologized profusely, and explained the confusion as to the waitresses, then asked if I had the dining plan, to which I responded that I had the Disney Dining Experience. She said she would deepen the discount, and when the check was finally brought, it reflected a 50% discount. This was satisfactory, as we did enjoy the actual food! She also offered us desserts, but I declined as we had been here nearly 2 & 1/2 hours!
Once we returned to the World Showcase, Matt decided to split from us once again. He wanted to go back to Downtown Disney, only this time to the West Side. As for us girls, we headed to Norway to see if we could ride the Maelstrom, but the line was a bit too long. Instead, we went over to China. We watched the acrobats for a little while, then walked back to see if Mulan was out and about, but she was not. We also poked around in the stores for quite a while, I just love the aromas in there! When we exited, we found a sight we had never encountered before, the bridge toward Germany was raised, I guess I never thought about it, but I never realized that it went up like that. They were just bringing out the Illuminations globe. I snapped a few pics of Courtney pretending to hold up the bridge, and a close-up of the globe. We were soon on our way, and discovered Snow White and Dopey just coming out, so we got more pics and autographs with no wait. In Italy, we stopped to watch the juggler and take pics for Ashleigh, as he was juggling soccer balls. He was having a bit of a hard time, as it was so hot and the soccer balls were slippery with sweat. Initially when we got to France, we lined up near the railing to see Belle and The Beast, but the line was so long, I was sure they would close it before we got there. Instead we went to the other side of France to see if Aurora was there, as she had been earlier in the week. She wasn't but, a handler was nearby, and said she would be out in a few minutes so we waited. What great character interaction we had! We were the only ones who had known she was there, so we had her alone for quite some time. She and Emily had a lengthy conversation!
Just after we walked away from Aurora, Emily had fallen asleep! We made our way all the back to Canada and grabbed a drink and sat under the umbrellas where Off Kilter plays. After we had rested up bit, I suggested we check out Mousegear while Emily was still asleep, so we could browse better. Frankly, I could have bought the store out, but I restrained myself! Since we never go into Innoventions, we decided to check it out a bit since Emily was still out. We circled around, and then Courtney saw it! Segway Central! "Oooh, let's go over there!" She has been commenting that she'd love to ride one, and when she found out that was a possibilty, she was over the moon. You can give one a try if you are at least 16, but if you are 16 or 17, you have to have parental consent, and since she's 17, I went into the movie presentation with her so I could sign. Emily chose the middle of this to wake-up. I signed permission and went to wait for her turn! She was in her glory! I snapped a few pictures, and told her that they do offer a tour, I'm sure that will be next trip!
Finally, our FP window for Soarin had opened and we were Soarin once again in no time! Courtney must have been right about her luck with this as we were seated in B1, finally! Originally, we had thoughts of going to MGM, but decided just to head back to Yacht Club instead. Once there, we changed and headed for the pool. Matt had returned, saw that we had and joined us in the pool. We were there quite a while, before I finally convinced Emily that it was enough. I had a bit of a surprise for her, that I knew she'd enjoy. Once we were back and dry, Matt took her to the beach area near the slide to watch Finding Nemo! I think it's a great addition, having movies and a campfire here. Courtney remained in the room, but after a while I went to join them. It was so peaceful and relaxing just sitting on a lounge chair, watching a movie, the campfire aglow, the Boardwalk all lit up, and Friendship launches bringing guests back from the parks! We were actually in bed at a more reasonable hour tonight!
Day 6 is on the way!
Me (Heather)
DS (Matt)
DD#1 (Courtney)
DD#3 (Emily)
Thursday, August 16th, 2007
I think perhaps, that this was laziest day we have ever spent in WDW.
It was so lazy, that I did not even set a wake-up call! Still, I woke up at a reasonable hour, got ready, got the kids up, and had another breakfast in the room. We were out the door by 9:30 and heading for a quick shopping trip to Downtown Disney. We had only a short time here, so we would leave the heavier shopping until later. We went straight for WoD and it was so nice not to have to fight the crowds that you encounter at night! There was hardly anyone here! I do think, we will hit this again in the morning from now on! I was able to breeze through there in no time flat, picking up quite a bit of merchandise. At least I was able to get my 10% discount! Among the things selected, were the absolute perfect pair of earrings for Courtney and the ultimate gift for Ashleigh, a Captain Jack Sparrow towel. From there, it was over to check out Summer Sands and Team Mickey, I don't believe we got anything here at this time, but there's always later!
It was time to consider heading to Epcot, as we had a lunch ADR at Le Cellier. We decided to allow plenty of time to grab a bus, any bus, to a resort and another to Epcot. Of course, we decided to catch the 1st available bus. There was just one pulling in when we arrived at the bus stop. We did have plenty of time, so it did not matter that it one of the furthest away, the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The driver questioned us as to why we didn't wait for a closer bus, but I told her we were not in that much of a hurry. She must have taken that quite literally, as she maybe have been the slowest driver we've ever encountered. As we arrived at the AKL, there was a bus waiting to go to Epcot, so we had no wait.
This was the 1st time this trip, that we entered Epcot from the front, and it was a little more depressing to have to walk by Spaceship Earth and not being able to ride, no one more disappointed than Emily! She must have asked 100 times if she askd once, why she couldn't ride it?, why it was closed?, why do they have to change it?
We checked the wait board and found that Test Track was already out of fastpasses. Well that plan was down the tubes, instead we grabbed some for Soarin for 5:45. That was a little longer than I had planned to be in Epcot, but Courtney & Emily really wanted to ride, so we would stay. It was very apparent that the crowds had really picked up since the beginning of the week, no more so than when we went to ride Figment and the line was all the way to the door! The wait wasn't that bad, though.
We decided to start making our way towards Canada, and found ourselves checking in at the podium about 20 minutes early. It was OK though, since we were off of our feet and in air-conditioning. We were seated exactly on time at possibly the worst table in the restaurant. The table nearest the entryway. Literally, evryone who entered had pass our table. It did not bother me too much, as were about to have a delicious meal. Matt and I both selected the cheddar cheese soup and the open-faced steak sandwich. Courtney opted for the grilled chicken sandwich without mushrooms and substituted cream cheese mashed potatoes for the steak fries. I believe Emily went with a burger.
To begin, our waitress was very attentive and brought our breadsticks and drinks promptly. I think the breadsticks were gone in no time flat! Actually, so were the drinks, as were exceptionally thirsty. She brought refills immedately and again one more time before the meal arrived. Here's where things began to go down hill. Apparently, unbeknowst to us, our waitress was switched with another, and I thought she was just helping the other out. We had been waiting an inordinately long amount of time for our soups, that finally, our entrees had arrived before our soups. The waitress did not even realize, and I had to remind her that we not yet received them. She apologized and brought them out after 5 minutes or so. I was trying to be the good sport about it, as I really didn't care for having to try and eat both at once, but I did not plan on complaining. However, we were never to see either waitress again. She disappeared for quite a while emerging to take care of the tables to our side, but always careful to keep her back to us. Even when we said"excuse me" to ask for something she would ignore us. Apparently that 1st waitress was no longer handling our table, but we did no know that. The waitress who had taken over meanwhile, was leaning against the wall 2 feet from us, watching everything, but saying nothing. We ate both our appetizers and entrees, without so much as a drop of our drinks. I was growing annoyed and asked another server, if she could please get the manager. She gave us a look, that we dare speak to her, and went off without getting the manager. After we had finished, and about 10 minutes later, our "new' waitress came and asked if she could clear away some plates, to which I replied I'd rather have had the refills! About 10 more minutes passed, when she returned with refills! By this time I would have rather had the check! I really didn't want to get the manager, I have never once complained in any restaurant on WDW property. Unfortunately, thsi would have to be the first. I expalined to her how everything started off wonderfully, but went downhill. I was also sure to mention that the meals were absolutley delicious and there was absolutely no problem there, but the service was just too horrendous! She apologized profusely, and explained the confusion as to the waitresses, then asked if I had the dining plan, to which I responded that I had the Disney Dining Experience. She said she would deepen the discount, and when the check was finally brought, it reflected a 50% discount. This was satisfactory, as we did enjoy the actual food! She also offered us desserts, but I declined as we had been here nearly 2 & 1/2 hours!
Once we returned to the World Showcase, Matt decided to split from us once again. He wanted to go back to Downtown Disney, only this time to the West Side. As for us girls, we headed to Norway to see if we could ride the Maelstrom, but the line was a bit too long. Instead, we went over to China. We watched the acrobats for a little while, then walked back to see if Mulan was out and about, but she was not. We also poked around in the stores for quite a while, I just love the aromas in there! When we exited, we found a sight we had never encountered before, the bridge toward Germany was raised, I guess I never thought about it, but I never realized that it went up like that. They were just bringing out the Illuminations globe. I snapped a few pics of Courtney pretending to hold up the bridge, and a close-up of the globe. We were soon on our way, and discovered Snow White and Dopey just coming out, so we got more pics and autographs with no wait. In Italy, we stopped to watch the juggler and take pics for Ashleigh, as he was juggling soccer balls. He was having a bit of a hard time, as it was so hot and the soccer balls were slippery with sweat. Initially when we got to France, we lined up near the railing to see Belle and The Beast, but the line was so long, I was sure they would close it before we got there. Instead we went to the other side of France to see if Aurora was there, as she had been earlier in the week. She wasn't but, a handler was nearby, and said she would be out in a few minutes so we waited. What great character interaction we had! We were the only ones who had known she was there, so we had her alone for quite some time. She and Emily had a lengthy conversation!
Just after we walked away from Aurora, Emily had fallen asleep! We made our way all the back to Canada and grabbed a drink and sat under the umbrellas where Off Kilter plays. After we had rested up bit, I suggested we check out Mousegear while Emily was still asleep, so we could browse better. Frankly, I could have bought the store out, but I restrained myself! Since we never go into Innoventions, we decided to check it out a bit since Emily was still out. We circled around, and then Courtney saw it! Segway Central! "Oooh, let's go over there!" She has been commenting that she'd love to ride one, and when she found out that was a possibilty, she was over the moon. You can give one a try if you are at least 16, but if you are 16 or 17, you have to have parental consent, and since she's 17, I went into the movie presentation with her so I could sign. Emily chose the middle of this to wake-up. I signed permission and went to wait for her turn! She was in her glory! I snapped a few pictures, and told her that they do offer a tour, I'm sure that will be next trip!
Finally, our FP window for Soarin had opened and we were Soarin once again in no time! Courtney must have been right about her luck with this as we were seated in B1, finally! Originally, we had thoughts of going to MGM, but decided just to head back to Yacht Club instead. Once there, we changed and headed for the pool. Matt had returned, saw that we had and joined us in the pool. We were there quite a while, before I finally convinced Emily that it was enough. I had a bit of a surprise for her, that I knew she'd enjoy. Once we were back and dry, Matt took her to the beach area near the slide to watch Finding Nemo! I think it's a great addition, having movies and a campfire here. Courtney remained in the room, but after a while I went to join them. It was so peaceful and relaxing just sitting on a lounge chair, watching a movie, the campfire aglow, the Boardwalk all lit up, and Friendship launches bringing guests back from the parks! We were actually in bed at a more reasonable hour tonight!
Day 6 is on the way!