ltjrrich
08-30-2011, 04:51 PM
Primary Cast:
Me - 26 y/o dude, lost count of how many times I've been to WDW many years ago. 20 times would be a reasonable guess.
Mom - Indeterminate age. She too has been to WDW many times.
Dad - Slightly younger than dirt. He has been to WDW many times, but doesn't necessarily remember. (Dad: "Wow! The Boardwalk is nice! Do you have to be a member to stay here?" Mom: "...No. WE stayed here two trips ago! Don't you remember?" Dad: "Hmm?")
Extended Cast:
Aunt T
Uncle S
Cousin S
Cousin A
Day Two: Electric Boogaloo (Monday 8/22)
This was one of the days where we couldn't change our dining reservation. The original plan was that Mom and I were going to have breakfast at 1900 Park Fare, but then Dad came too and we couldn't change it to 3. So Dad and I went and mom slept in. Dad and I filled up at the buffet - Mary Poppins wept and begged us to stop eating and save some food for the others, but we weren't full yet.
Dad and I went back to the room, and my parents told me to do whatever I wanted and to just meet them in front of the Brown Derby around 6. So I went to the main building of ASMo, and I decided to get on the first bus that arrived - which happened to be a bus for Epcot. Off I went to Epcot - my favorite park.
I had no real plan for the afternoon, so I decided to just wing it. The popular attractions had long waits, so I figured I'd hit the Test Track single rider line and then do the World Showcase. I got to Test Track, stood in line for maybe 3 minutes, and heard "Attention Riders! Vehicle Testing has been terminated. Please turn around and exit the line. If you are on the Fast Pass line, then hang on to your Fast Passes and you can use them later." It's not truly a Disney trip until Test Track breaks down, now is it? So I hit up Club Cool, which back in my day was Ice Station Cool. The kids today don't know what they're missing. Then I decided to begin the quest I had been planning since July - Drinking Around the World!
First was Mexico. I did the Gran Fiesta Tour, and then went to the margarita place inside the pavilion, and I got a blood orange margarita. :marg: Muy bueno. In Part 1 I said this was a trip of firsts, and this was my first time drinking around the world and my first margarita at Mexico. Next was Norway, where I rode Maelstrom (I think they missed a golden opportunity for their restaurant. Instead of Akershus, it should have been called Mealstrom). Then I got the Linie Aquavit Glacier Shot. The nice lady at the cart said if I could drink it without making a face, then I was a Viking. Guess what? I'm a Viking. Also, my first Aquavit shot. Next up was China, and not only was this the first time I ever had a Canto Loopy (loved it!), but it was also the first time I ever saw Reflections of China. I thought it was quite nice. As a kid, Epcot to me just meant Future World. I used to think the World Showcase was super boring. However I think the WS might be my favorite part of Epcot now. Future World isn't the same anymore. Sure, Mission Space is fun, but it's no Horizons. And with Test Track never moves, so it's certainly no World of Motion. And I really miss Wonders of Life - mostly for the little containers of grapes and cheese that they had for sale. Seriously.
Anyway, after China I did include the Outpost in the Drinking Around the World and I got the Safari Amber. :beer: Enjoyable. At that point it was time to start heading to DHS to meet my parents. Took the boat over, and met up with my parents who were watching a Streetmosphere show. They told me "We just sat down, and then a show happened!" It was three guys from the Department of Public Works (or something) and they were trying to pick a new union rep by playing Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Right after the show ended, the skies got stormy and lightning must have struck somewhere very close by because it was the absolute loudest thunder I have ever heard. It actually made people jump and scream - myself included. We then went to the Great Movie Ride. Do they only run one ride vehicle now? I know they did the last time I was there, but that was during the off-season. I thought for summer they might run both, but apparently not. Not that it really matters to me - 99% of all the times I've done the GMR, I got the cowboy. It's actually a refreshing change of pace to see the gangster.
I love the new Star Tours! I loved the old one anyway, but the newfangled 3D and the changing ride combinations is awesome!
TOT and RNR were fun as always, and then at 8 we had dinner at the Brown Derby. We were actually supposed to have a late lunch there, but dad and I were so full from breakfast that we cancelled and I used my Mobile Magic app to book a dinner reservation. Seriously, if you can get the app, I highly recommend it! I got the Cobb salad appetizer, because why go to the Brown Derby and NOT get Cobb salad? I also had the duck two ways: Awesome, and Delicious. I forgot what my parents got for dessert, but it was topped with something that looked remarkably like hay.
After dinner, Mom went back to the room while Dad and I met up with Uncle S and the two cousins for Extra Magic Hours. DHS gets very crowded for EMH - Uncle's theory was that it's because DHS only has a handful of rides, so there's no place for the crowd to disperse. Everyone gets concentrated at the small number of open rides. We only had time to do TSM (where I had the highest score in the car!) and then RNR. Dad, Uncle S, Cousin A, and I all waited in the standby line, but Cousin S went on the single rider line. Initially she was way ahead of us, but not only did we catch up to her twice, but after the second time we passed her and ended up on the ride before her. It seems the single rider line is shorter, but moves slower.
After that Dad and I drove back to the room (Mom took the bus and left the car for us), where we got whatever sleep we could before getting up early on Day 3.
Me - 26 y/o dude, lost count of how many times I've been to WDW many years ago. 20 times would be a reasonable guess.
Mom - Indeterminate age. She too has been to WDW many times.
Dad - Slightly younger than dirt. He has been to WDW many times, but doesn't necessarily remember. (Dad: "Wow! The Boardwalk is nice! Do you have to be a member to stay here?" Mom: "...No. WE stayed here two trips ago! Don't you remember?" Dad: "Hmm?")
Extended Cast:
Aunt T
Uncle S
Cousin S
Cousin A
Day Two: Electric Boogaloo (Monday 8/22)
This was one of the days where we couldn't change our dining reservation. The original plan was that Mom and I were going to have breakfast at 1900 Park Fare, but then Dad came too and we couldn't change it to 3. So Dad and I went and mom slept in. Dad and I filled up at the buffet - Mary Poppins wept and begged us to stop eating and save some food for the others, but we weren't full yet.
Dad and I went back to the room, and my parents told me to do whatever I wanted and to just meet them in front of the Brown Derby around 6. So I went to the main building of ASMo, and I decided to get on the first bus that arrived - which happened to be a bus for Epcot. Off I went to Epcot - my favorite park.
I had no real plan for the afternoon, so I decided to just wing it. The popular attractions had long waits, so I figured I'd hit the Test Track single rider line and then do the World Showcase. I got to Test Track, stood in line for maybe 3 minutes, and heard "Attention Riders! Vehicle Testing has been terminated. Please turn around and exit the line. If you are on the Fast Pass line, then hang on to your Fast Passes and you can use them later." It's not truly a Disney trip until Test Track breaks down, now is it? So I hit up Club Cool, which back in my day was Ice Station Cool. The kids today don't know what they're missing. Then I decided to begin the quest I had been planning since July - Drinking Around the World!
First was Mexico. I did the Gran Fiesta Tour, and then went to the margarita place inside the pavilion, and I got a blood orange margarita. :marg: Muy bueno. In Part 1 I said this was a trip of firsts, and this was my first time drinking around the world and my first margarita at Mexico. Next was Norway, where I rode Maelstrom (I think they missed a golden opportunity for their restaurant. Instead of Akershus, it should have been called Mealstrom). Then I got the Linie Aquavit Glacier Shot. The nice lady at the cart said if I could drink it without making a face, then I was a Viking. Guess what? I'm a Viking. Also, my first Aquavit shot. Next up was China, and not only was this the first time I ever had a Canto Loopy (loved it!), but it was also the first time I ever saw Reflections of China. I thought it was quite nice. As a kid, Epcot to me just meant Future World. I used to think the World Showcase was super boring. However I think the WS might be my favorite part of Epcot now. Future World isn't the same anymore. Sure, Mission Space is fun, but it's no Horizons. And with Test Track never moves, so it's certainly no World of Motion. And I really miss Wonders of Life - mostly for the little containers of grapes and cheese that they had for sale. Seriously.
Anyway, after China I did include the Outpost in the Drinking Around the World and I got the Safari Amber. :beer: Enjoyable. At that point it was time to start heading to DHS to meet my parents. Took the boat over, and met up with my parents who were watching a Streetmosphere show. They told me "We just sat down, and then a show happened!" It was three guys from the Department of Public Works (or something) and they were trying to pick a new union rep by playing Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Right after the show ended, the skies got stormy and lightning must have struck somewhere very close by because it was the absolute loudest thunder I have ever heard. It actually made people jump and scream - myself included. We then went to the Great Movie Ride. Do they only run one ride vehicle now? I know they did the last time I was there, but that was during the off-season. I thought for summer they might run both, but apparently not. Not that it really matters to me - 99% of all the times I've done the GMR, I got the cowboy. It's actually a refreshing change of pace to see the gangster.
I love the new Star Tours! I loved the old one anyway, but the newfangled 3D and the changing ride combinations is awesome!
TOT and RNR were fun as always, and then at 8 we had dinner at the Brown Derby. We were actually supposed to have a late lunch there, but dad and I were so full from breakfast that we cancelled and I used my Mobile Magic app to book a dinner reservation. Seriously, if you can get the app, I highly recommend it! I got the Cobb salad appetizer, because why go to the Brown Derby and NOT get Cobb salad? I also had the duck two ways: Awesome, and Delicious. I forgot what my parents got for dessert, but it was topped with something that looked remarkably like hay.
After dinner, Mom went back to the room while Dad and I met up with Uncle S and the two cousins for Extra Magic Hours. DHS gets very crowded for EMH - Uncle's theory was that it's because DHS only has a handful of rides, so there's no place for the crowd to disperse. Everyone gets concentrated at the small number of open rides. We only had time to do TSM (where I had the highest score in the car!) and then RNR. Dad, Uncle S, Cousin A, and I all waited in the standby line, but Cousin S went on the single rider line. Initially she was way ahead of us, but not only did we catch up to her twice, but after the second time we passed her and ended up on the ride before her. It seems the single rider line is shorter, but moves slower.
After that Dad and I drove back to the room (Mom took the bus and left the car for us), where we got whatever sleep we could before getting up early on Day 3.