A WDW & DCL First Trip - Food & Wine - Club Villain - MNSSHP - Sep 16

[Sinders99]

It looks like you had an amazing trip! I love your photos! I am also a picture taking geek, but I still have not mastered taking photos at night.

We are headed to Disney World the first week of September, so I hope we experience the low crowd levels you did. We are also taking a cruise on the Fantasy (our first ever cruise) in April, so I really enjoyed your report on your cruise.

We were so so lucky with crowd levels on our trip. The only drawback is the heat!! We really did struggle in the midday and afternoon heat but we were lucky not to experience downpours or big storms until really late in our trip - as you're about to see in my next update!! You'll love the cruise!! We loved ours and we're so glad we did it!!

 

[big kid at heart]

I really am enjoying your TR. It feels like being along with you for your first visit to WDW. Your pictures are so good they look like postcards. is also my fav and I had a shirt made with him on it at the DS t-shirt shop.

 

[Sinders99]

I really am enjoying your TR. It feels like being along with you for your first visit to WDW. Your pictures are so good they look like postcards. is also my fav and I had a shirt made with him on it at the DS t-shirt shop.

Awww I'm so glad you're enjoying the report and thank you for the kind words. I do love my photography. It's a passion

 

[Sinders99]

Day 11 Part 2: MICKEY'S NOT SO SCARY HALLOWEEN PARTY!!

Now before we venture out on our Halloween extravaganza I should explain the cultural differences between Halloween celebrations.

Australians just don't celebrate Halloween - shocking I know!! Growing up every Australian child hears about the elaborate Halloween celebrations that take place in the US every 31st October and dreams of a night filled with costumes and candy (we call them lollies in Australia) but alas it's just not a part of our Australian culture. In recent years there have been some parties and events starting to spring up but we don't trick or treat and we don't decorate our homes.

So you can imagine how excited we were to be attending a Halloween celebration!! We really agonised over our costume choice because we knew it needed to be easy to pack and lightweight for the Florida heat and we were so glad we made the choice we did.

So after a quick rest back in our room we readied ourselves, slipped into our customer and jumped on the bus to Magic Kingdom. We were super excited to see many of our fellow bus riders dressed in costume too!! Sitting across from us were a fantastic couple dressed as Wendy & John Darling - so cute!!! We also had a lovely little Ariel and a little Buzz Lightyear onboard. TOO CUTE!!

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom gates just after 4pm, flew through security and got our treat bag and special wrist band.

As we walked past Town Hall and the main hub area we were ushered off to the right between town hall and the back of the main street shops where we found photo pass photographers and our first candy stop. The atmosphere was so wonderful!! Everyone was in party mode, dressed wonderfully and out to have a great time!!

So what did we choose as our costume???

18.09.16-44 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-47 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

We went as sailors!!! Very fitting for us seeing as though DH served 10 years in the Royal Australian Navy and I served 8 years in the Royal Australian Navy. I paired my outfit with a cute pair of nautical mickey ears I picked up on our Disney cruise.

18.09.16-51 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-54 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-60 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

Our first stop for the night was the trick or treat stop at the Tikki Room. Little did I know that there was DOLE WHIP nearby!! So of course I had to stop for an impromptu dole whip stop!!

18.09.16-65 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-62 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
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After a little candy and a dole whip we decided to head on past Pirates of the Caribbean. Captain Jack Sparrow was doing a meet and greet just opposite the ride entrance but the wait was really long so we decided to walk onto Pirates of the Caribbean instead. There wasn't a sole in site and we literally walked right onto a boat!!

18.09.16-69 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-72 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-73 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

Even though it was walk on we had some fun in the queue and checked out some of the fun scenes and props. After coming out of the ride we made our way down towards Tom Sawyer Island. By this time the sun had gone down and everyone was starting to sit out spots for the first parade. The evening was just beautiful!!

18.09.16-80 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

We made our way around to Haunted Mansion which we had ridden on our first Magic Kingdom day but everyone told us it was an absolute must during a Halloween party because of the entertainment outside the exit area. I swear there was a slightly different ride experience too but I can't be absolutely sure.

18.09.16-82 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-83 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-84 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

After exiting the ride we came across Lady Carlotta who was just FANTASTIC!!! She honed in on DH right away and spent a good 5 minutes telling the group how much she liked a sailor and when she heard DH's accent she just went crazy!! It was one of the best character experiences we had the whole trip!!

18.09.16-87 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-88 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

After leaving Carlotta we joined the queue for the obligatory photo pass photo!

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We just couldn't stop laughing at the photo pass assistant standing beside the carriage just out of view with a white ghost on a stick trying to scare us


By now the first parade of the evening was in full swing which made getting out of the Haunted Mansion area pretty difficult. We did manage to find another candy stop though near the riverboat, so we joined that line and collected a little more candy

By this time we were starting to get quite hungry so we thought we'd duck into Columbia Harbour House. Unfortunately for us though it had just closed and there was no room at the inn

If there's one thing we disliked about the party it was that we really struggled to find a dining option. We had planned to eat earlier but we got swept up in the whole party atmosphere and left it too late. Oh well, we eventually found an option but that's for later in the report.

As an avid photo nut I'd made sure to map out all of the special photo pass photo spots and knew that the hitchhiking ghosts were a must so ......................

18.09.16-204 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

While everyone else was distracted with the parade we walked right up and had this stunner taken LOL!

We eventually pushed through the parade crowds and headed to fantasy land. We were super excited to find It's A Small World had reopened. It had been closed for refurbishment earlier in our trip and we didn't think we'd get to ride it. We jumped at the chance to walk on but kind of regretted that decision when our boat got banked up behind 10 others and we had to sit in the final room listening to It's a Small Word After All over and over and over and over and over


18.09.16-90 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-91 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-93 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

Yep this is where we got stuck for about 10 minutes!!

So many more fun photos to come that I'm going to have to split this post into 2!!! I hope you're loving the party!!​

 

[Bellabully]

Late comer to the report! Just read straight through and love your writing style. Feels like we are on trip with you! The amazing photos are an added bonus! Also enjoying your everyday life moments. Thank you for keeping up with the trip report, it can be difficult at times.

 

[big kid at heart]

Those costumes were a great idea and you both looked so good in them. Just want to say your pictures look better than the PP photographer ones!

 

[missangelalexis]

Your costumes are so cute, I love all the PP photos you were able to get!

The interaction with Lady Carlotta sounds great!

It sounds like you guys were having a wonderful time so far!

 

[Sinders99]

Those costumes were a great idea and you both looked so good in them. Just want to say your pictures look better than the PP photographer ones!

Awwww thanks so much!! I do love my camera

 

[Sinders99]

Day 11 Part 3: A Halloween Party Interrupted!!

OH MY GOODNESS!!! Its been so long since I last posted!! I'm so sorry but life's been super busy. Since my last post I've gotten a promotion into a different position, I've run my first half marathon and completed my Disney Virtual Running Shorts runs (I LOVE my first Disney running medals)!! Big achievements all round in our household.

So back to our trip report. When we left off we'd just been rescued from a 10 minute stand still in the final room of Its A Small World. After escaping the clutches of a thousand happy world citizens we decided it was about time to find some dinner and made our way through Fantasy Land and stopped for a photo pass photographer

18.09.16-98 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

And as we crossed the bridge from Fantasyland to the hub we caught this great little shot of the castle beautifully lit ....... awwww

18.09.16-99 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

So we'd heard some rumblings as we walked but we quickly realised as we entered the hub area that a HUGE storm was descending upon us at great speed full of heavy heavy rain and very dangerous lightening. Main street was an absolute mad house as parents began fleeing with the kids and making a bee line for transport before the situation got worse. Unfortunately the storm descended right around fireworks time (10pm) and so the pre show and Hallow Wishes were both delayed.

18.09.16-104 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-107 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

Not having any kids to worry about and not really worrying if we got wet we figured we'd take our chances and see what transpired. There hadn't been any rain yet just a whole lot of lightening and thunder but nothing too scary ......... that was all about to change.

We decided to head to Casey's and enjoy a hotdog and a serve of the famous corn dog nuggets. Of course the place was PACKED!! We really should have eaten prior to the party but we didn't leave ourselves enough time - ROOKIE MISTAKE!! After finally getting our food we headed to one of the grassed areas in the hub and settled in to wait out the storm delay. I also used the time to take a few quick snaps.

18.09.16-109 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

We quickly realised how serious the storm was though when a genuinely terrifying lightening strike hit the ground just outside the boundaries of Magic Kingdom. The whole ground shook, people screamed and the thunder was ear splitting. The whole time this was going on they kept making announcements that Hallow Wishes was delayed pending the weather passing. In quick succession we had a series of a dozen terrifyingly close strikes which sent 3/4 of the park running for transport and retreating from the park. We on the other hand simply moved from the open grassed area and took shelter on the Casey's patio looking at the Castle. Within minutes of seeking shelter the heavens opened and what felt like the entire contents of the lake bucketed down on us!! The rain was deafening and only broken by the ear splitting thunder. The rain poured down for 90 minutes AND THE WHOLE TIME THEY KEPT ANNOUNCING THAT HALLOW WISHES WAS DELAYED PENDING THE WEATHER!!! It became rather comical in the end considering we were watching the park flood before our very eyes but it gave us time to meet a lovely family from Idaho.

Finally after 90 minutes of torrential rain it stopped and they announced that Hallow Wishes was starting in 5 minutes!! YAY!!! We didn't miss it!! It was super delayed and 11:30pm but the park was almost cleared out and it was like getting our own personal fireworks show!

Please enjoy my Hallow Wishes fireworks

18.09.16-111 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-122 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-123 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-126 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

After the fireworks ended the park was seriously deserted but then they announced a shorter abridged version of the Villains show (because of the wet stage) so we raced down main street to get a front row spot and another photo pass pic

18.09.16-131 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-137 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

And shortly after the show ended they announced the second parade for the night would go ahead - at 12:30pm!! It was seriously like having the park all to ourselves.

18.09.16-138 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-139 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
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18.09.16-157 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr

After the parade finished we lingered on in the park for another half hour just to enjoy having the park almost to ourselves and took some more beautiful shots.

18.09.16-159 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-163 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
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I mean SERIOUSLY LOOK HOW EMPTY THE PARK WAS!!!

18.09.16-166 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-172 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
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Seriously SUCH an amazing night even though we were interrupted by the storm. It was the highlight of our trip and money VERY well spent!!

18.09.16-200 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
18.09.16-204 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr
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P9180560 by Jennie Gardiner, on Flickr​

 

[Sinders99]

If you'd like to view a short video of Hallow Wishes please follow this link to see

https://flic.kr/p/ToRAxn

 

[missangelalexis]

Wow, that storm sounds so scary!! Sounds like waiting it out paid off though. So glad you were able to see Hallowishes- it's my favorite! Wow, you even got to see the parade after closing? Must have felt like your own private party! I love all your photos from after the party was over, they are so stunning.

 

[TXMNie]

Looks like a great time at the Halloween party! Reading your report is getting me excited for fall!