Day 3
We had already had a pretty memorable two days ( car troubles, falling fireworks )! Mickey woke us up bright and early Thursday morning. Today was our MGM day and hubby said he would meet us after he returned the rental car back ( the van seems to be fixed, let's keep our fingers crossed ). Well there went the PS reservations for two at Boma's . The kids and I grabbed some drinks in our refillable mugs, stowed them in the van and headed for our first ever Disney bus ride. It was a little chilly outside, but the bus came within a few minutes and we were soon on our way to MGM ( we made a stop at the Poly for pick-up, and were at the park within about 15 minutes ). My son had been waiting three years to ride Tower of Terror, so it was our first stop after we entered the gates and made it through the security. The girls and I waited on the curb in front of Beauty and the Beast. TJ took our talk-about in with him and had it on while he rode, we had a big laugh when we got to hear the riders scream as the elevators fell. When TJ got off the ride my daughter snapped a picture of him with this big grin on his face.( keep in mind this it takes a lot to make this kid smile, unless it is a video game, money in his pocket, or chocolate ). He probably could have rode the TOT again and again. We than made our way down Hollywood Blvd. checking out the shops and trying to determine what to do next while waiting for hubby to catch up with us. We checked out the "hat" and spent a little time playing at the interactive kiosk.
The characters were out in full force, so the next hour was spent watching the girls run from character to character. Still no sign of hubby, and we were starting to get a little restless for a ride of some kind. I finally called him on his cell phone. He said he was on his way. I waited in front of the big hat while the children continued getting autographs and pictures with the characters. I must admit it was nice just sitting and watching as all of the people ran about. I'm glad I have learned the park and rarely needed to refer to a map. Marc finally showed up around 11:30 ( we had now been in the park since opening and it was time to get serious ). We headed for Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, followed by One Man's Dream, and the Back Lot Tour. The weather was great and the crowds were easy to maneuver through. We grabbed some popcorn and headed back towards the hat so that we could check out a space for the Stars and Motorcars parade. The parade was great and the girls got a lot of attention because they were sitting up front with the little children. Marcus had his first Turkey leg, which ended up being a must have for him almost everyday. I think he was finally starting to relax and enjoy the trip. After the parade we hit the Great Movie Ride, Muppet Vision 3-D and Star Tours. We finally headed back to the room for drinks and than off property for a meal! Our plan was to come back that evening for Fantasmic. The rest of the afternoon is a blur, but we hit the park again that evening and got in line for Fantasmic. My son decided to go back to the room and Marc after handing us yet another Turkey leg to snack on ( and after the CM's kept yelling it would be a while and that there would be plenty of seats ) headed for some of the shops. By the time he came back we had started moving towards the entrance and we were only able to keep in contact through our talk-abouts.
Needless to say I was not prepared for the long line or the pushing and shoving and frankly at times it was frustrating and scary. People with strollers and parents with small children by the hand were either pushing or being pushed. I was beginning to wonder if it was worth all of this trouble. By the time we made it into the " clearing ", Marcus had caught up with us and we were finally seated. If ever I see the Fantasmic show again it will be with a dinner pkg. Otherwise it is not worth all of the hassle. We enjoyed the show, but the girls did panic a little when the fireworks went off. When we got back to the hotel that night we found TJ sound asleep on the bed. It made for great pictures! Well another day over.
Day 4
It was still the week before Christmas so the crowds had still not arrived. This was also the first chance we had to actually fulfill one of of PS reservations . We had already cancelled two because of car troubles.
My husband and son were not interested in sitting down with Pooh for breakfast so the girls and I hit the monorail and arrived in MK in plenty of time before our 8 am reservations at the Chrystal Palace. It was fun going through the gates of MK while the other folks waited for the official park opening. Main street was virtually empty and we were able to get a few pics of the castle without a lot of people ( in fact by Saturday this would become impossible because WDW seemed to become crowded overnight because Christmas weekend had arrived ).
After checking in we were called within a few minutes and for the first time that week we actually had a full breakfast. We took pics of the food so that the guys could see what they were missing. The girls seemed to be too excited to really sit down and enjoy there food. My oldest daughter is crazy about Pooh , and my "baby" girl loves Eeyore , so they were in character heaven. The usual characters were in place and the girls got lots of visits and pictures. Pooh was actually standing not far from our table most of the time so Quisha got to watch him the entire time.
We had promised to meet the guys by 9 am in front of Walt's statue , so we said good-by to Chrystal Palace and headed for Adventureland. ( Now keep in mind we had promised to meet the guys in front of the statue, and somehow in the excitement I forgot! ). Quisha saw a shop with some interesting stuff and Nicki and I decided to go to the Swiss Family Treehouse. After our adventure we got on the Magic Carpet Ride ( no wait ) ,and this was about the time that it hit us we were suppose to meet Marc and TJ! We flew to the statue ( of course they were not there ), so we called on the cell phone and was finally able to get together. After a few group pictures orchestrated by my hubby we hit Tomorrowland so that we could get fastpass for Buzz Lightyear.
On our last trip we missed Tommorrowland and Adventureland so these two sections were first on our list to explore this trip. As we walked pass the ET Alien Encounter we were amazed at the number of young children in line,standing by the warning signs! After collecting our fastpass we headed back over to Adventureland and rode the Jungle Cruise,and Pirates of the Caribbean. We than preceded back to Tommorrowland to ride Buzz. We loved this ride but we all agreed that Men in Black at Universal is a lot better. By the time we got out the crowds had picked up and you could tell that the Christmas vacation people were starting to show up. We rode TTA and caught the end of a show at the Palace Theatre. I planned to come back doing Christmas Day to see COP , but we never did. I am hoping that I will get a chance this summer if it is still open.
We headed out toward the castle just in time for the Christmas show with Mickey, Minnie and friends. Followed by a run over to Frontierland to get a fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We had time for The Country Bear Jamboree and the Haunted Mansion before heading back to the BTMR. Nicki had chickened out on this the first time , but this time she was determined to give it a try. She ended up loving it and bugged us to death about getting on it again! We laughed and screamed the entire time.
By this time we were all a little hungry and thirsty so we headed out of the park and caught the boat over to the other side. We refilled our mugs and headed off property for some lunch and a little shopping.
That evening we hit Animal Kingdom for the first time since our first trip in 1998. I can't explain why I feel such pride when we enter this park , but I do . It may be in part because it will probably be as close as I will ever get to Africa , but also because the African tradition is so rich in this park.
Once again we were determined to hit some of the areas that we missed before and unfortunately we never got back again except for that one afternoon. So you know where I will be headed come this summer ( heat and all ).
Walking through the oasis brought back a lot of memories from our first trip . It was hot and humid , but I forgot all of that when I saw the Tree of Life for the first time. This thing is so life like I still have a hard time processing the fact that it is not real. This time was no different . It was like coming home. The sounds the smells , the awe that my kids get on there face when they see animals is priceless. The lose all of that "teen" aloofness and their eyes glaze over. The love animals and I'm not sure they realize how child like they become. It must be the same way for little ones when they meet Mickey for the first time!
We saw It's Tough To Be A Bug. Than headed for the Kilimanjaro Safaris. On our way we noticed that people were lining up for the JJ Parade. I was determined to get on the Safari ride so the parade was the last thing on my mind. As we were walking by a cast member gave me a tip - apparently the parade repeats itself on its way back in behind the gates and because of our timing we would probably be able to catch the hold thing right in front of the exit of the safari ride! There was no line for the Safari ride ( everyone was waiting for the parade ). This time we saw lots of animals and the tour guide who was from Africa kept us rolling. The ride was wild ( and it should have prepared me for my next ride but it didn't ) but fun. And sure enough when we came out of the exit you could hear the music from the parade heading our way. This became my favorite parade. We danced and waved at the family's in the parade and because we were up front we got to shake the hand ( or paws ) of the characters in the parade.
We than headed over Dinoland to ride Dinosaur. All I can say is "never again". This ride took me by surprise . I don't know what I was expecting but that was not what I got. The girls and I held on to each other for dear life the entire ride. We have the picture to show for it. And there was this one poor little girl in the front of the car with here Dad that you can see with her head down crying in his lap. It took me several minutes afterwards to get my legs and feet to stop shaking. If there are any details to this ride I missed them because I was to busy holding on and screaming! My son of course thought it was great and my husband would never admit to not liking it. It was indeed a bumpy ride. After this we stopped long enough at a shop to get ourselves together ( a little shopping will do it every time ) and than headed out of the park and back to the CR.
We headed back into the parks briefly that evening ( which park escapes me at this moment ) I guess after my adventure with the dino the rest of the evening was a blur. If one of the children can remember I will add a postscript to the report later.
