„Did you feel pressured to provide only EXCELLENT ratings?“

[MEK]

3 back to back rides on EE? You guys are tough! I get a coaster headache after the first. Boo!

Score on all the animals on Safari. Wow - you really did see quite a few giraffes and the lions really were perfectly positioned. NICE!

 

[RGirl]

Hi Karin!! Doing the DIS TR rounds again, trying to catch up.

That would be SO GREAT if you could ask about whether kids are allowed on the kitchen tour - I would love to know!!!

Phew! I’m so glad you got your donuts - I was worried you had been at WDW for about 24 hours and had yet to get any!!!

Love the fireworks pictures - I want to be watching those right now.

And a perfect late-night relaxation back at the villa - love it!

How cool to see DeVine right at the front of the park! I don’t think we’ve ever managed to run into her.

What great luck with EE (Willow’s current favorite ride)! Your ride technique reminded me of us - ride that puppy as many times as humanly possible before the wait gets too long Willow is going to be SO excited about the single-rider line for EE when we go next year - she was too young for that on previous trips (and only just tall enough for EE for the first time our last trip). We have never asked for front row on EE before, but I think we will have to give that a try.

Great safari pictures, Karin!

I need to hit the Cruise board to catch up on your TRs over there too - I sometimes forget I need to go over there!

 

[Leshaface]

How I miss having a Krispy Kreme shop near my house

That's one thing DH and I are going to disagree on, is putting DS on his shoulders to see. I'm sure he'll want to do it, but me, i'd be afraid of getting in someones view. Had I never been a DIS'er, I probably wouldn't have even thought twice about hoisting the kiddo up. But glad you were able to move to get a better view.

How does Peoplemover have a line!? Crazy!

That's one thing I was unable to get at Disneyland this past week, was popcorn. It smelled so good, but it was just so hot out, it didn't seem like it would be the best treat. Definitely in January!

Good idea on going around the parking lot again! Very smart!

Score on riding EE 3 times first thing in the morning!

Woah, can't believe it was an hour wait for KS. I couldn't have waited that long, good for you guys.

 

[jenseib]

Holy Updates Batman!!!!

So sad that you had to get off the ship. Don't you hate that they make you do that?
Thats great that OKW had a room ready for you. We stayed there in march and it's just too big for us at least if you don't have a car. The internal bus was really slow and when I did use it I had wished I just drove up front.
I think this year has been really busy. We had big crowds in March and even in Aug the crowds were a bit more than I expected.

 

[pas130]

Great safari pics Karin I can't do a hour wait in the heat. Maybe if it were just DH and I...maybe...but I do love that safari

 

[dizneeat]

Holy mega updates! Sounds like a nice day at DHS and top it off at the MK. I'll ride EE three times in a row if I have the opportunity, such a fun ride. No matter how many I see, I never tire of the safari pictures! Love to see the lion and lioness out.

I need to get done with this one, so I can concentrate on our summer trip. (... and I still have 2013's summer trip to finish! )
We had awesome luck with our rides at the Studios and I was so happy we got to see Wishes, my absolute favourite fireworks that same day. There was just little time for us after the cruise and it all worked out perfectly.
AK was awesome and we even had FP+ for Epcot that same day.

3 back to back rides on EE? You guys are tough! I get a coaster headache after the first. Boo!

Ah, we just LOVE EE! I would ride it 10 times in a row if they would let me stay on.
Sorry it gives you a headache.

Score on all the animals on Safari. Wow - you really did see quite a few giraffes and the lions really were perfectly positioned. NICE!

It was unbelievable. First we had a row to ourselves and then all those animals roaming the safari route. We were in heaven. And I could not believe that we got a photo with both the lion and lioness.

Hi Karin!! Doing the DIS TR rounds again, trying to catch up.

Oh, how I know about the catching up game.

That would be SO GREAT if you could ask about whether kids are allowed on the kitchen tour - I would love to know!!!

I promise, I will ask when we get back onto the Magic. We are definitely doing another kitchen tour, if they offer one.

Phew! I’m so glad you got your donuts - I was worried you had been at WDW for about 24 hours and had yet to get any!!!

No trip without KK doughnuts! It would not have been the same.

Love the fireworks pictures - I want to be watching those right now.

Me too!

And a perfect late-night relaxation back at the villa - love it!

How cool to see DeVine right at the front of the park! I don’t think we’ve ever managed to run into her.

Pst, don't tell, but we ran into her again on our way out of the park.

What great luck with EE (Willow’s current favorite ride)! Your ride technique reminded me of us - ride that puppy as many times as humanly possible before the wait gets too long Willow is going to be SO excited about the single-rider line for EE when we go next year - she was too young for that on previous trips (and only just tall enough for EE for the first time our last trip). We have never asked for front row on EE before, but I think we will have to give that a try.

Yeah, Willow picked a GREAT ride to be her favourite!
You HAVE TO ask for front row (if the wait is not too long!) as there is such an awesome view from the front car. You are going to love it.

Great safari pictures, Karin!

I need to hit the Cruise board to catch up on your TRs over there too - I sometimes forget I need to go over there!

Guess I need to head over there as well, as I haven't updated there in quite a while. With all that was going on around the house it was hard to keep up with things here on the DIS.

 

[dizneeat]

How I miss having a Krispy Kreme shop near my house

Me too! We would have to travel to the UK to get our hands on some .......... hm, that makes me think.

That's one thing DH and I are going to disagree on, is putting DS on his shoulders to see. I'm sure he'll want to do it, but me, i'd be afraid of getting in someones view. Had I never been a DIS'er, I probably wouldn't have even thought twice about hoisting the kiddo up. But glad you were able to move to get a better view.

You know, if Daniel puts .Calvin on his shoulders while you wait for the fireworks to start - no problem. The problem is with the people who push in once the fireworks start, stand smack in front of you and put their ten year old, who is wearing a goofy hat and holds a huge balloon. I think, as long as people know there is a child on someone's shoulders before the fireworks start then you can change your viewpoint. Hope I did make a little sense.

How does Peoplemover have a line!? Crazy!

It DOES!!! At the labour day weekend the line started way over towards Space mountain. And they needed to hold people before the moving walkway as it was too crowded up there.

That's one thing I was unable to get at Disneyland this past week, was popcorn. It smelled so good, but it was just so hot out, it didn't seem like it would be the best treat. Definitely in January!

I really understand. I usually get some in the evening or when we leave the park. But this trip was in February and though it was nice and warm for us, it was "cool" enough to munch it right away.

Good idea on going around the parking lot again! Very smart!

We are prone to start a new road at the far end and therefore have made many trips around parking lots before.

Score on riding EE 3 times first thing in the morning!

Woah, can't believe it was an hour wait for KS. I couldn't have waited that long, good for you guys.

To be honest, I could not believe it would really be an hour, but it was, but since you slowly move through the line and aren't stopped for a longer period of time it wasn't all that bad.

Holy Updates Batman!!!!

So sad that you had to get off the ship. Don't you hate that they make you do that?
Thats great that OKW had a room ready for you. We stayed there in march and it's just too big for us at least if you don't have a car. The internal bus was really slow and when I did use it I had wished I just drove up front.
I think this year has been really busy. We had big crowds in March and even in Aug the crowds were a bit more than I expected.

We love OKW just because it is so spread out. Remember, we always have a car and we just love that it does not feel like a hotel. It's like you return home to your little village.
We have only used the buses at OKW once and were pretty lucky as we waited less than 5 minutes, but I can see where you are coming from.
Yes, it was very busy, but then it had been President's day during our cruise and the parks were full.

Great safari pics Karin I can't do a hour wait in the heat. Maybe if it were just DH and I...maybe...but I do love that safari

Thank you, Jeanette.
As for the wait - we did not expect it to really be an hour, but it was. They even had opened up an area we have never seen before and it was nice and warm for us, but it was not really as hot as it is in August.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 7, February 21

We CAN stick to our plans …. - Part 4

Far too soon it was time to get off the ride and it was now close to noon, so we decided to have some lunch before leaving the park.
I had done my homework and knew that Tamu Tamu Refreshments had something on their menu that we wanted to try. Tom got himselfsome beer from the stand across the road and then we headed to place our order. A few minutes later we picked it up at the window on the other side of the building and headed into the nice shaded courtyard. We quickly found a table and after taking some pictures of the





St. George’s premium Lager and my



Coke it was time to dig into the





Slow-Cooked Chicken Curry, mild African-spiced chicken curry served over Jasmine Rice and a side of Pita Bread. We had decided to share it and were glad we did as it was quite filling and absolutely delicious. Once we had finished our lunch we strolled back to Asia and Tom found another beer he wanted to try. So we stopped at a little stand to get him a





Kingfisher Lager. We found a seat across the path



and enjoyed the sight of the Tree of Life. About half an hour later we left the park but before that we had another "run in" with Devine



before we headed to the car park.



I was now the assigned driver and off we went. We made one more quick stop at Downtown Disney to pick up and items we had planned on buying before returning to Old Key West.
We had some Diet Coke and coffee and shared some of the





leftover doughnuts. Then Tom took another dip in the Jacuzzi, while I finished off as much packing as possible. Around quarter to four we got ready to head back out again.
This time we were off to Epcot and the third park in a day and a half. But first we had a reservation at Beaches and Cream. We arrived at the Beach Club shortly before our reservation and headed right to the sign in desk. We were stunned, as a host took us right in and we were seated. It was easy to decide on what we wanted to eat. Tom ordered the



Angus Beef Burger - served with Cheddar, Lettuce, and Tomato on a Fresh-baked Bun with French Fries, while I had long decided to go with my new favourite there, the



Grilled Cheese and Tomato Bisque – a six-cheese blend on Brioche Bread. It didn’t take long for both to be served and we were happily munching our early dinner. We were far too full for dessert so we just paid the bill and then headed over to Epcot.
We had three FP+ set up and wanted to spend Extra Magic Hours in the park as well. And since we had a little time to kill before our first FP+, we strolled over to France, so Tom could sport the new hat, which he had bought at Disneyland Paris.





When we got to Morocco we asked at the host’s stand how long Spice Road Table



was open and if they were open during Extra Magic Hours. They assured us they were and so we decided to come back after our last FP+ ride, to try some of their tasting plates.

To be continued ............ ​

 

[jenseib]

Yum! Lunch looks good.

 

[Teri1]

I love the great pics on the safari ride. Mine usually come out blurry.

 

[franandaj]

I had no idea that there was a place in AK serving a chicken curry. That sounds like a nice light snack when shared.

Someday I will get to Beaches and Cream. Sounds like a great day jam packed yet relaxing too.

 

[dizneeat]

Yum! Lunch looks good.

It definitely was. Unfortunately they have changed the menu since.

I love the great pics on the safari ride. Mine usually come out blurry.

Tom's camera is a lot better than mine. All of these were taken with his camera - we just handed it to the one of us who was closer to the animals.

I had no idea that there was a place in AK serving a chicken curry. That sounds like a nice light snack when shared.

It was absolutely delicious. Unfortunately they changed the menu shortly after our visit and it is no longer on the menu.

Someday I will get to Beaches and Cream. Sounds like a great day jam packed yet relaxing too.

You have not been to B&C yet? Oh, please, plan some time to visit. Their comfort food is really nice and their ice-cream sundaes are to die for.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 7, February 21

We CAN stick to our plans …. - Part 5

They assured us they were and so we decided to come back after our last FP+ ride, to try some of their tasting plates.
We made a u-turn and slowly walked back through France, England













and finally Canada, where Tom had another treat, a



Moosehead. We sat on one of the benches while he slowly emptied his cup and took in the hustle and bustle around us.





Then it was time to head to our first FP+ ride, Mission Space. We would not have needed FP+. There was no line at all and we ended up joining the end of the regular line.
Took only a minute or two until we were divided into teams



and soon we were off on our mission. And since there had been no line we just turned around and got in line again. This time we waited about five minutes until we were divided into teams. Mission accomplished we went over to Test Track, to see how long the standby wait time was. Too long, but the wait for the single rider line was pretty acceptable, so we got in there.



We waited about 20 minutes until it was our turn to fill empty spaces in the cars. And no matter how often we ride it, I still like the old version better. Once we got off we walked over to Mouse Gear and did some shopping before heading over to Spaceship Earth, which again we had a FP+ for, which totally wasn’t needed. It was a walk on for everyone. So we soon ended up on our way through history and into the future.





When we got off we still had time before our final FP+, so we cut through Club Cool and then over to Journey into Imagination.



We got our own “train” as we were the only people riding at that time.







And after a short visit to the gift shop we were off again. It was now time for our last FP+ ride, Soarin. So over to The Land we went



and down to Soarin, where we were greeted by a long standby line and quite a line to scan our Magic Bands as well. But soon it was our turn and we were on our way. For people in the FP line it was more or less a walk on until the point where the line splits in two. Everyone was directed to the left and we were the first people to have to head to the right. Well, both lines were pretty equal and within ten minutes we were divided into rows. We love to ride on the top row and were prepared to ask for it, but we were quickly directed to the last bay and put into the top row anyway. Score! The TV for the pre-show was broken, but no one seemed to mind. And before we knew it we were sent in to take our seats. Well, in our row not so much. There was one family who was supposed to sit all to the far left, but when they sat down they had decided to “split up”. They sat all over the place in that row and had quickly buckled themselves in. Quite a few of us were still standing and finally a cast member opened up the belts again and they had to move to the end of their row, so that the rest of us could sit down. Once seated and buckled in we were off on our leisurely flight. And after we had landed again and gotten off we walked over to Living with the Land instead of trying to watch Illuminations. I think there were four people in our boat including us. But it did not take away from the fun ride this was. Seeing all the creative ways to grow crops never gets old.







When we got off the ride and outside, Illuminations had already ended and we stopped at Mouse Gear to pick up a forgotten item and to refill one of our gift cards. There was still an hour and a half left of Extra Magic Hours and we thought why not sit down at Spice Road Table now for a while. So we strolled over to the restaurant, still way within the time they had told us to come back in. We asked at the hostess stand and nope they were closed.
Same person who had told us before they were open during Extra Magic Hours, now told us that they were closed and only the bar was still open, but if we wanted a drink it would have to be “to go”. We both didn’t feel like a drink, so we slowly walked back and then out of the park to head back to our car. And since we had left the park much earlier than expected we came up with the clever idea of driving to Krispy Kreme to see if they had hot doughnuts.
20 minutes later we saw the light on and quickly turned into the parking lot. They had just started baking again and there was already a long line of people waiting and watching the doughnuts creeping down the conveyor. One of the sales people then went to pick some doughnuts off of the belt with paper and handed them to the waiting people. We all were stunned and everyone thanked the young lady wholeheartedly. It took a while until the orders of the people ahead of us were filled and the young lady started a second round of handing out doughnuts. We told her that we had already had one, but she just blinked and said “enjoy another one”. So we both had received two doughnuts each. Once it was our turn we bought a dozen glazed doughnuts to hand to the security person at Old Key West and 6 glazed doughnuts for ourselves for breakfast. And after paying we headed back to our car and got on our way back to Old Key West.
We arrived shortly after 11pm and we both picked a drink out of the fridge. Tom’s choice was another beer he had found while shopping the day before, an





Apple Pie beer. Well, it sounds unusual and so was the taste. I have to say that after a sip or two it went down the drain, not Tom’s taste at all. We watched a little more TV and were a bit sad that our only trip to the US was already coming to an end again. Around midnight we were ready to go to bed.


To be continued ............ ​

 

[NOKA06]

Karin my husband and I are so enjoying your trip reports! We have been going back and reading the older ones we missed! Thank you for doing these.

 

[dizneeat]

Karin my husband and I are so enjoying your trip reports! We have been going back and reading the older ones we missed! Thank you for doing these.

Ah, thanks! I hope you visit my newest TR about our cruise in the Med as well. This one is nearly finished.

 

[jenseib]

apple pie beer does sound quite strange.
Don't you just love when CM's give you wrong info...NOT! Wonder where she got her earlier info.

 

[JKSWonder]

Don't you just love when CM's give you wrong info...NOT! Wonder where she got her earlier info.

I'm beginning to think they sometimes just make stuff up!

 

[dizneeat]

apple pie beer does sound quite strange.
Don't you just love when CM's give you wrong info...NOT! Wonder where she got her earlier info.

He is always interested in trying something new and has had some "strange" brews, which were actually really good, but this one was ..... just not drinkable.

Yeah, I should have known better than to ask the CM there, but it seemed like the obvious thing to do. Well, live and learn.

I'm beginning to think they sometimes just make stuff up!

I am sure they do.

 

[Leshaface]

That chicken curry looks absolutely delicious! I'll have to remember that in January.

What?! No ice cream at Beaches and Cream?!

Love Tom's hat! I can't see really well, but what does his shirt say?

I just don't understand how people don't/can't follow directions.

Having a drink 'to go', doesn't really mean the restaurant is open...right? I mean, I don't interpret it that way. That stinks, I would have been totally let down.

That's nice of you guys to think of the security guard. Bet it made his night a lot sweeter!

 

[pas130]

Great updates Karin! The chicken curry looks GOOD! Great pic of Devine!

The food at B&C looks really good, it has been so long since we've been there, I think when we stayed at BCV in 2005 or 2007 yikes I can't remember what year we were there...eek Loving all the topiary pics as well!

My DH said last night he won't go back to Disney unless we stay at OKW I keep reminding him we are booked at Poly and not changing...why won't he believe me