faline
11-10-2012, 03:49 PM
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Plan for Wednesday, October 31, 2012Epcot or No Park
Le Cellier for Dinner
After I had gone to sleep Tuesday evening, I was awoken by my cell phone ringing. I didn’t answer it. When I checked my messages on Wednesday morning, I had a message from Artist Palette saying they had replaced my items and they were there and ready for pickup.
We brought muffins home with us on Tuesday evening so we had those and coffee for breakfast.
After breakfast, we decide to return to Disney Studios and visit those attractions we wanted to see and didn't get to the other day.
Should we go to The Brown Derby for lunch? We check on availability for reservations – the first lunch available is for 1:50 but we can check in with the desk when the restaurant opens at 11:30. We opt to do that.
We walk over to Toy Story Mania. The standby line is listed as 30 minutes. We walk into the building and walk almost all the way up to Mr. Potato Head before we find the line. We must have hit it just right as the line behind us begins to quickly build. I believe we were exiting the building within 30 minutes. Tower of Terror has a 10 minute stand by time so we take our up and down ride.
By now, it’s almost time for the Brown Derby to open so we browse the shops for a bit and then walk into The Brown Derby. I inquire about a table for two and am told I could have an 11:30 time or a time around 12:15. I say we’ll take the 11:30 time. The cast member at the desk then asks if we’d be interested in being the Celebrity Family for the day. Sure! Why not?!
Gene & I are outfitted with bowler hats (black plastic) and I’m also provided with a feather boa. When the time to open the restaurant arrives, Gene and I are led out front by the manager who is loudly announces that everyone should make way for the celebrities; that pictures are allowed but we are not currently signing autographs. She snaps a few pictures of us and we return back inside. To all those waiting to be seated, we are announced as the celebrities of the day and receive a round of applause. A red ribbon is pulled across the door, I am handed an extremely large pair of scissors – another picture – then I cut the ribbon to open the restaurant. As we enter the restaurant, we are showered with star confetti and are led to our table which is decorated with star and Mickey confetti. Another picture is taken of us while seated at the table. Very fun!!
I don’t see the pork dish we like so well on the menu but they do have a pork chop that sounds interesting. Gene ends up being interested in ordering the pork chop so I decide to have the grouper for lunch. Gene enjoys the pork chop very much. The chef stops by to say that today is the debut of the pork chop dish on the menu. The grouper is delicious as well. While dining, the manager returns with a little pamphlet outlining our status as Celebrities of the Day and it includes all the pictures that we taken of us. Very cute!! We take the pamphlets with us but leave the hats and boa behind when we leave the restaurant.
We arrive a little bit late for the beginning of Beauty and the Beast but get to see most of the show. Tower of Terror is still listed as a 10 minute standby. Rock n Roller Coaster is listed as having a 30 minute standby time. We get fast passes for Rock and Roller Coaster and take another ride on Tower of Terror. We only have to wait a little bit for our fast pass time to come around on Rock and Roller Coaster. I’ve now checked everything off my “to do” list at Disney Studios so we leave the park.
At Saratoga Springs, we stop into Artist Pallette and get the items that had been misplaced. We also buy some items for breakfast on Thursday morning. We walk back to our resort and spend some time relaxing on our patio. We watch the herons and egrets fishing in the pond out back and enjoy the milder temperatures this day has brought (though it is certainly still on the cool side).
Once again, I had thought of going to Epcot first to see if we could get a wristband for Illuminations but then I realized that our Le Cellier reservation was for 7:25 and thought that might be cutting it close. As it turns out, we could have made it to Illuminations on time but that’s okay.
We arrived at Epcot in time to enjoy a ride on Spaceship Earth before heading over to the Canada pavilion for our dinner reservations. Having had a large lunch, we opt to skip appetizers and dessert and only have entrees. As usual, I had the filet mignon and Gene the Strip Steak. Dinner was very good and we are once again, full to the gills by time we leave.
It’s 15 minutes before Illuminations. Gene suggests we walk through World Showcase before leaving so we take a fairly brisk walk (slowed now and then by people traffic) counter-clockwise around World Showcase.
Illuminations begins as we are nearing the park exit. We are able to see the end from the bus stop.
Back home, I use the last of my bath bombs and settle in for my last sleep before our return home.
The room phone rings. It is from a cast member at Artist’s Palette. Apparently, the items that Disney replaced were given mistakenly to another family who has returned the items to Artist’s Palette. I explain that the items were lost, were replaced, and we have them in our possession. All is well.
We need to go home tomorrow so perhaps not all is perfect.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Plan for November 1, 2012
Magic Kingdom
Lunch at Grand Floridian Café
Return Home
Since we had not yet done any packing and this is checkout day, I had asked for a 6:30 am wakeup call. I also set the alarm on my phone. All too soon, the alarm and the phone were both ringing so we got up.
After showering and dressing, we started the packing – breaking to have some coffee and breakfast (bagel and cream cheese for me and a muffin for Gene). When the packing was finished, we did a thorough recheck of the room to be sure we hadn’t left anything behind. The bags were loaded in the car and we drove over to Carriage House. Here, we deposited our checked bags at the Resort Airline checkin area and received our boarding passes.
That completed, we drove to the Ticket and Transportation Center and parked our car in the Simba lot there. A tram to the entrance and a monorail ride to the park later, we entered the Magic Kingdom. Peter Pan only has a 10 minute standby – done. Haunted Mansion has a 10 minute standby – done. Pirates of the Caribbean has a 5 minutes standby – done. Big Thunder Mountain has a 10 minute standby – done. Country Bear Jamboree will start in 6 minutes – done. (The new version is a condensed version of the old – the essential items were kept but a lot of stuff was, indeed, edited out.) Buzz Lightyear has a 5 minute standby – done. Peoplemover has no line – done! It’s around 11:30 a.m. as I take one long, sad look at the Castle, turn my back and walk down Main Street to the exit.
We head to the boats and take a much warmer and more pleasant ride over to the Grand Floridian for lunch at the Grand Floridian Café. Although we did not do this on our last trip, it has become somewhat of a tradition to have lunch here on our last day – airline travel time permitting. Gene has the Reuben sandwich and I have what I think is called the Grand Floridian sandwich – open face sandwich with bacon, tomato, ham, turkey, and boursin cheese on focaccia bread. Good but filling!
By the way, the structure for the Grand Floridian vacation club is coming right along. The structure of the building is there. The quiet pool is all fenced off and the shop on the first floor is shuttered and undergoing renovations.
After lunch, we take the boat to the Poly and walk from there to the Ticket and Transportation Center. Tram back to our car. Rearrange some of our belongings in the carryons and we are off to the airport. We stop at a 7-11 for gas. We’ve driven so much (Not!) this week that we needed to put 3 gallons in the tank!! When we’ve had rentals before, we’ve invariably messed up getting in the right lane for our return at the airport. We manage our return smoothly this time and are quickly in the airport.
Wow! Look at that! A rare sight at Orlando airport – security screening checkpoints that are not a mass of slow moving cattle runs. I certainly thought there would have been lines. We are quickly through security and find our gate. Takeoff is on time. As I write this, we are still in the air but should be arriving in Boston within the next 1-1/2 hours.
Plan for Wednesday, October 31, 2012Epcot or No Park
Le Cellier for Dinner
After I had gone to sleep Tuesday evening, I was awoken by my cell phone ringing. I didn’t answer it. When I checked my messages on Wednesday morning, I had a message from Artist Palette saying they had replaced my items and they were there and ready for pickup.
We brought muffins home with us on Tuesday evening so we had those and coffee for breakfast.
After breakfast, we decide to return to Disney Studios and visit those attractions we wanted to see and didn't get to the other day.
Should we go to The Brown Derby for lunch? We check on availability for reservations – the first lunch available is for 1:50 but we can check in with the desk when the restaurant opens at 11:30. We opt to do that.
We walk over to Toy Story Mania. The standby line is listed as 30 minutes. We walk into the building and walk almost all the way up to Mr. Potato Head before we find the line. We must have hit it just right as the line behind us begins to quickly build. I believe we were exiting the building within 30 minutes. Tower of Terror has a 10 minute stand by time so we take our up and down ride.
By now, it’s almost time for the Brown Derby to open so we browse the shops for a bit and then walk into The Brown Derby. I inquire about a table for two and am told I could have an 11:30 time or a time around 12:15. I say we’ll take the 11:30 time. The cast member at the desk then asks if we’d be interested in being the Celebrity Family for the day. Sure! Why not?!
Gene & I are outfitted with bowler hats (black plastic) and I’m also provided with a feather boa. When the time to open the restaurant arrives, Gene and I are led out front by the manager who is loudly announces that everyone should make way for the celebrities; that pictures are allowed but we are not currently signing autographs. She snaps a few pictures of us and we return back inside. To all those waiting to be seated, we are announced as the celebrities of the day and receive a round of applause. A red ribbon is pulled across the door, I am handed an extremely large pair of scissors – another picture – then I cut the ribbon to open the restaurant. As we enter the restaurant, we are showered with star confetti and are led to our table which is decorated with star and Mickey confetti. Another picture is taken of us while seated at the table. Very fun!!
I don’t see the pork dish we like so well on the menu but they do have a pork chop that sounds interesting. Gene ends up being interested in ordering the pork chop so I decide to have the grouper for lunch. Gene enjoys the pork chop very much. The chef stops by to say that today is the debut of the pork chop dish on the menu. The grouper is delicious as well. While dining, the manager returns with a little pamphlet outlining our status as Celebrities of the Day and it includes all the pictures that we taken of us. Very cute!! We take the pamphlets with us but leave the hats and boa behind when we leave the restaurant.
We arrive a little bit late for the beginning of Beauty and the Beast but get to see most of the show. Tower of Terror is still listed as a 10 minute standby. Rock n Roller Coaster is listed as having a 30 minute standby time. We get fast passes for Rock and Roller Coaster and take another ride on Tower of Terror. We only have to wait a little bit for our fast pass time to come around on Rock and Roller Coaster. I’ve now checked everything off my “to do” list at Disney Studios so we leave the park.
At Saratoga Springs, we stop into Artist Pallette and get the items that had been misplaced. We also buy some items for breakfast on Thursday morning. We walk back to our resort and spend some time relaxing on our patio. We watch the herons and egrets fishing in the pond out back and enjoy the milder temperatures this day has brought (though it is certainly still on the cool side).
Once again, I had thought of going to Epcot first to see if we could get a wristband for Illuminations but then I realized that our Le Cellier reservation was for 7:25 and thought that might be cutting it close. As it turns out, we could have made it to Illuminations on time but that’s okay.
We arrived at Epcot in time to enjoy a ride on Spaceship Earth before heading over to the Canada pavilion for our dinner reservations. Having had a large lunch, we opt to skip appetizers and dessert and only have entrees. As usual, I had the filet mignon and Gene the Strip Steak. Dinner was very good and we are once again, full to the gills by time we leave.
It’s 15 minutes before Illuminations. Gene suggests we walk through World Showcase before leaving so we take a fairly brisk walk (slowed now and then by people traffic) counter-clockwise around World Showcase.
Illuminations begins as we are nearing the park exit. We are able to see the end from the bus stop.
Back home, I use the last of my bath bombs and settle in for my last sleep before our return home.
The room phone rings. It is from a cast member at Artist’s Palette. Apparently, the items that Disney replaced were given mistakenly to another family who has returned the items to Artist’s Palette. I explain that the items were lost, were replaced, and we have them in our possession. All is well.
We need to go home tomorrow so perhaps not all is perfect.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Plan for November 1, 2012
Magic Kingdom
Lunch at Grand Floridian Café
Return Home
Since we had not yet done any packing and this is checkout day, I had asked for a 6:30 am wakeup call. I also set the alarm on my phone. All too soon, the alarm and the phone were both ringing so we got up.
After showering and dressing, we started the packing – breaking to have some coffee and breakfast (bagel and cream cheese for me and a muffin for Gene). When the packing was finished, we did a thorough recheck of the room to be sure we hadn’t left anything behind. The bags were loaded in the car and we drove over to Carriage House. Here, we deposited our checked bags at the Resort Airline checkin area and received our boarding passes.
That completed, we drove to the Ticket and Transportation Center and parked our car in the Simba lot there. A tram to the entrance and a monorail ride to the park later, we entered the Magic Kingdom. Peter Pan only has a 10 minute standby – done. Haunted Mansion has a 10 minute standby – done. Pirates of the Caribbean has a 5 minutes standby – done. Big Thunder Mountain has a 10 minute standby – done. Country Bear Jamboree will start in 6 minutes – done. (The new version is a condensed version of the old – the essential items were kept but a lot of stuff was, indeed, edited out.) Buzz Lightyear has a 5 minute standby – done. Peoplemover has no line – done! It’s around 11:30 a.m. as I take one long, sad look at the Castle, turn my back and walk down Main Street to the exit.
We head to the boats and take a much warmer and more pleasant ride over to the Grand Floridian for lunch at the Grand Floridian Café. Although we did not do this on our last trip, it has become somewhat of a tradition to have lunch here on our last day – airline travel time permitting. Gene has the Reuben sandwich and I have what I think is called the Grand Floridian sandwich – open face sandwich with bacon, tomato, ham, turkey, and boursin cheese on focaccia bread. Good but filling!
By the way, the structure for the Grand Floridian vacation club is coming right along. The structure of the building is there. The quiet pool is all fenced off and the shop on the first floor is shuttered and undergoing renovations.
After lunch, we take the boat to the Poly and walk from there to the Ticket and Transportation Center. Tram back to our car. Rearrange some of our belongings in the carryons and we are off to the airport. We stop at a 7-11 for gas. We’ve driven so much (Not!) this week that we needed to put 3 gallons in the tank!! When we’ve had rentals before, we’ve invariably messed up getting in the right lane for our return at the airport. We manage our return smoothly this time and are quickly in the airport.
Wow! Look at that! A rare sight at Orlando airport – security screening checkpoints that are not a mass of slow moving cattle runs. I certainly thought there would have been lines. We are quickly through security and find our gate. Takeoff is on time. As I write this, we are still in the air but should be arriving in Boston within the next 1-1/2 hours.