Tuesday, September 13th Review of our very first MNSSHP!
*disclaimer - I sincerely apologize for the giant photos. Photobucket was not working with me today when it came to resizing things.
Honestly the night was a dream come true. YES, it torrential downpoured from 6:30 till about 11pm and my shoes were waterlogged and we were trudging through water the whole night... we're talking rain so hard that you can't see five feet in front of you. And yes, the first parade was canceled and the fireworks were delayed, and the Hocus Pocus show was maybe a 5min version of the whole show... And we were denied alcohol on our honeymoon at BOG (more on that below) ...But - it was still perfect.
It was not only my first MNSSHP, but also kind of my first time getting to celebrate Halloween and go trick or treating (at 30 years old). I grew up in a very religious home and we were never allowed to go out on Halloween. So, my brand new hubby and I decided we'd go all out - full costumes and everything! (We did get mistaken a few times for the real characters, and had to politely explain that we weren't allowed to take photos or sign anything.)
I already cosplay as some of you know, so while I was originally heartbroken that because of rules I wasn't going to get to wear my yellow Belle ballgown, in retrospect I'm SO glad I didn't now, because crowds and because my dress would have gotten completely destroyed in that storm. So, I was village Belle and my husband Arthur was Peter Pan.
We had been at MK throughout the day already, went home (VGF) around 3ish and got ready, got back to MK around 4:30pm.
First thing we did was got our SOTMK cards!
Then, we went for FP+ at ETWB. And it was everything.
Belle really is just the greatest Princess.
After that we went and met more Princesses because I'm 5 years old apparently.
And, then we just walked around really and enjoyed the party, enjoyed seeing everyone else dressed up, did a bit of window shopping, checked out where some of the candy stops were, and met up with some friends from home who happened to be visiting Disney at the same time as us. And of course stopped to take a few fun photos in Fantasyland
(Right after this photo a Mom had her kid run up to me with autograph book and camera in hand, and I tried to explain that I wasn't Belle and I couldn't take photos, but you could go meet her next door and ETWB! But, they didn't speak English. It was a bit awkward, especially because there was a CM next to us watching this whole conversation go down and didn't do a thing lol.)
At 6:30pm, we went for dinner at BOG. Unfortunately it was not the greatest experience, and I think we had really built it up because we hadn't been back in almost two years, and I was going to be dressed as Belle in BOG, and we were newlyweds on our honeymoon. They wouldn't serve us alcohol because even though we did have our government issued IDs, being from Canada, that's not good enough. You have to also have your passport with you, or a photo of your passport on your phone. Apparently, it's a Florida law. But like.... we just got married, and we are clearly in our late twenties/early thirties. And who carries around their passport? I checked the Disney website, and nowhere did it say anything about this law... you'd think with all the international travellers who come to WDW, they'd have this advertised somewhere on Disney's site. And it's fine, it's not like we absolutely needed alcohol - but on our last trip my husband promised the next time we came to BOG, we'd splurge on a nice bottle of champagne to celebrate our marriage, and we couldn't do that. So that was a bit of a let down. The CM who served us wasn't exactly sympathetic about it either, nor did he offer anything to try and make up for it, which again, wasn't necessary, but would have been a nice gesture. We still took the time for some fun photos throughout the castle while we waited for our dinner, and of course got shots with Beast! My phone had died at this point so there's a couple cute photos of us and the Beast together on MM, which we still need to buy.
When we came back out into the lobby after dinner, we saw everyone huddled in the castle in ponchos so we knew that wasn't a good sign. It was just pouring. At this point we knew we COULD go to Guest Services and see about a refund, or an offer to do another party date, but we kind of just looked at each other and were like 'Welp, this is awful, but being in that line up for over an hour isn't going to be much better, and we're already here, so we may as well have some fun." So that's what we did!
I had to meet Belle and Gaston but the rain clearly meant no outdoor M&G. So, we hid in Gaston's Tavern to see if the rain would let up. It didn't. But then, a very nice CM whispered to my husband that they may end up doing a meet inside the tavern. So, we waited awhile longer, and they did! They only met for a few minutes but since we were some of the first in line, we got to meet them. Again no photos of this that I have, but there are some great ones on MM once I get around to buying it. It was a fantastic meet and greet. They both loved our costumes and Belle said it was "like looking into a mirror".
So after that it was still raining and awful, and we were ankle deep in water. So, we switched out our shoes for flip flops, and continued on with the night! We met Snow White, Tinkerbell, and a few others. The Tink meet was adorable. She said she wasn't sure about me because I had the same bow in my hair that Wendy does - but she adored my husband!
I didn't have any desire to meet Jack and Sally because I've never seen Nightmare Before Christmas (oh lord please don't kill me! I was just never allowed to watch it growing up and haven't gotten to see it yet), so we were fine missing that M&G, and I wanted to meet some of the others like Cruella and the 7D, but with the rain it was hard to get over to Storybook Circus. We tried to get candy but lines were so long and then rain was coming down so hard, so we said we'd wait on candy till later.
The rain was very slowly starting to die down around 10:30ish, and the fireworks were delayed because of it. But, we still got to see them and they were awesome! Then we tried to get a spot for the Hocus Pocus show. It kept being delayed because of the rain on the stage. Eventually they came out and did the closing number and peaced. So, we didn't really get to see it, but got a good taste of the show! Then, we tried to get a spot for Boo to You and though it wasn't the greatest spot, and Headless Horseman didn't come out, it was still really fun!
By the time Boo to You was over there wasn't much time left, I think it was 11:45 or something. So we hightailed it for candy and there were no more lines, anywhere. Having a basket as a prop when you're Belle pays off
Then it was 11:50pm and we were next to Storybook Circus, and miraculously there was no line for 7D. Not a single person. So we had a great meet with those guys!
Then it was Midnight! We'd been at MK for the entire day, save a couple hours back at the hotel to get ready. So, we could have stayed for the 12am show for Hocus Pocus, but the crowd was already gathered at the castle and we knew we wouldn't have a great view, and we were both pretty exhausted. We kind of kept looking back at the stage while we were exiting down Main Street to catch glimposes. Hubby and I are planning to find a good copy of it on YouTube and watching it one night at home with popcorn and champagne. I know it won't be the same, but it'll still be fun
All in all - a fantastic MNSSHP! We're hoping to be back next year.
It was really our only "fun" photo....I'll be disappointed if it never shows. Has anyone else found that it can take awhile to show up?? Fingers still crossed it will eventually show.
Costumes? Add your name to the Official Guest List Thread - 
