COMPLETED! Tipsy Ducks in Love: A Honeymoon Trip Report/First Time Trip - January 2019 - Completed 7/3!

Day 8: Nick doesn't feel comfortable in hammocks

We woke up this morning a little sad with the realization that we only had two days left in the bubble before having to head back to reality. We didn’t stew on that too long and vowed to make the most of our last two days.

We arrived at MK by 10 AM and very quickly found ourselves hungry.
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We both had protein bars while waking up in the room, but we needed some proper sustenance. We found ourselves at the end of Main Street and in front of Sleepy Hollow. We were intrigued by the menu and got the Nutella waffle to split.

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This was really delicious and felt like a light and refreshing start to the day. We enjoyed it while sitting on a bench on the pathway on the side of the castle with the sun peeking through some clouds. We lingered a while, took some pictures and people watched. The hustle and bustle some families display is kind of unreal to us. I can totally understand the “park warrior” mentality, but it is not our touring style. Life is busy and has enough hustle and bustle that, even though we are Disney people in our free time, we take it at a pace slower than many. It was a really great start to another Disney day.
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We then walked over to our first FP of the day at 7DMT. Still a great ride the second time through and I like our on ride photo a little better this time. My notes from this day say “Excellent ride with a ridiculous standby line”

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We then headed back into Fantasyland for our first visit to Mickey’s PhilharMagic. While waiting for the next performance we ended up swapping our Splash Mountain FP for one for Winnie the Pooh. We had walked by that ride a few times and noted how the wait times were much higher than what they were for our version back in California, so we wanted to see what the hype was about. But, it was another chilly day and getting wet did not sound fun.

PhilharMagic was super fun! We both really enjoyed it, despite the poor quality of the film that left us both cross-eyed and worried about getting a headache. We actually just got PhilharMagic in DCA and it was a much cleaner film! The duck butt was broken though!

We exited PhilharMagic and headed directly over to Winnie the Pooh. The line was surprisingly backed up and we had a decent wait even with a FP+. We got the sense that this was going to be a busy day. We had a great interaction with a very chatty CM at the load point who we talked with about the sheer size of WDW and how different Disneyland is. She congratulated us on our marriage and sent us into the Hundred Acre Wood. Pooh, as an attraction, was different enough that it felt fun and novel to us. We often find that when we go to Disneyland on a random afternoon, and it’s much more crowded than we expected, we go on Pooh because it’s really tucked away and has a short line. It’s cute!

We to this point had not been further into Adventureland than the Citrus Swirl cart, and so headed deeper into the jungle.

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We spotted the spring roll cart and Tory really wanted to get an order after hearing so much hype from different bloggers and contributors. I was super skeptical of these as they seemed to me to just be fried greasy egg rolls you can find anywhere.
403966


We bought a pair of the cheeseburger ones and hopped in the Tiki Room line. One bite completely changed my mind on these. Yes, they were greasy, but the filling was insanely delicious. I immediately found it similar to the flavor from an In N Out burger (for those of you who have been lucky enough to visit the California institution). It had something to do with the onion and spice mix added to the beef. Every bite was better than the last. I devoured my roll and found myself wishing that we had bought another pair! They were that good!

We were quickly inside The Enchanted Tiki Room, which I described in my notes as “the same but with poorer sight lines.” It also felt like we were crammed in there more tightly. Our second sign that this was going to be a crowded day.

The third sign of the crowds , and one that we could not ignore, was the return line for the Jungle Cruise. We were shocked to see a CM standing in the middle of Adventureland with a sign that marked the end of the FP+ line. We hopped in and ended up waiting roughly 20 minutes to get a boat. To pass the time we took a survey from Disney that we had gotten regarding our day at Hollywood Studios. We also did some eavesdropping/people watching. There was a very grumpy family in line behind us and another in front of us. It’s amazing how much preplanning and strategizing you really need to do to have a successful vacation to the World. We overheard many conversations over the course of the trip that suggested that we had done more homework than many others, including return visitors.

The Jungle Cruise is my favorite ride at Disneyland (As you might remember, I did the skipper routine for a talent show in high school). Also, when it was closed for refurbishment a few years ago out on our coast, I made a point to go to “Skipper School”, a little show the Skips put on outside the attraction. So you could say I’m a Skip at heart at this point.

The WDW version of the Jungle Cruise might be even better than the Anaheim one! We got an excellent skipper who really went over the top and made it a great cruise. I had no idea that there would be a tunnel. Our Skip made a joke that we were headed into a gift shop because what Disney ride doesn’t end in a gift shop?

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We had 20 minutes before our final FP+ of the day, and it was crystal clear at this point that the crowds were going to be rougher today. Instead of trying to find a short line, we found a spot across from the Pirates of the Caribbean entrance and enjoyed some people watching in the sun. Also, Tory channeled her inner pirate and love for rum in this photo.

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Pirates of the Caribbean was different enough to be enjoyable, but it’s short. We turned a corner and then all of a sudden we were at the unload point. It doesn’t feel like it wraps up like the Disneyland version. The photo they take is very jarring as well. The WDW version just doesn’t have the same charm that ours has. I found myself missing the bayou looking out towards the Blue Bayou or the very end that goes right by the queue line.


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We got off PoTC and decided it wasn’t worth it to brave the crowds any longer. I know it was probably relatively not that crowded (I just saw some your photos from Spring Break, whoa!), but we weren’t keen on lines and peoples. It was early afternoon at this point, and we didn’t have a proper meal in our bellies (we split a waffle and had a spring roll). So, we headed to the bus stop with no real plans other than a need for sustenance. We got to talking and agreed that we were curious about the Port Orleans resorts and wanted to check them out for a potential return trip (Note: Coronado Springs won out as our return trip hotel for September). So after a short wait a bus for Port Orleans Riverside showed up and we hopped on board!

Up next: Where did we find sustenance? And what's all this about Nick not liking hammocks?
 
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Day 8: Nick doesn't feel comfortable in hammocks

We woke up this morning a little sad with the realization that we only had two days left in the bubble before having to head back to reality. We didn’t stew on that too long and vowed to make the most of our last two days.

We arrived at MK by 10 AM and very quickly found ourselves hungry.
403961


We both had protein bars while waking up in the room, but we needed some proper sustenance. We found ourselves at the end of Main Street and in front of Sleepy Hollow. We were intrigued by the menu and got the Nutella waffle to split.

403964



This was really delicious and felt like a light and refreshing start to the day. We enjoyed it while sitting on a bench on the pathway on the side of the castle with the sun peeking through some clouds. We lingered a while, took some pictures and people watched. The hustle and bustle some families display is kind of unreal to us. I can totally understand the “park warrior” mentality, but it is not our touring style. Life is busy and has enough hustle and bustle that, even though we are Disney people in our free time, we take it at a pace slower than many. It was a really great start to another Disney day.
403965


We then walked over to our first FP of the day at 7DMT. Still a great ride the second time through and I like our on ride photo a little better this time. My notes from this day say “Excellent ride with a ridiculous standby line”

403970
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We then headed back into Fantasyland for our first visit to Mickey’s PhilharMagic. While waiting for the next performance we ended up swapping our Splash Mountain FP for one for Winnie the Pooh. We had walked by that ride a few times and noted how the wait times were much higher than what they were for our version back in California, so we wanted to see what the hype was about. But, it was another chilly day and getting wet did not sound fun.

PhilharMagic was super fun! We both really enjoyed it, despite the poor quality of the film that left us both cross-eyed and worried about getting a headache. We actually just got PhilharMagic in DCA and it was a much cleaner film! The duck butt was broken though!

We exited PhilharMagic and headed directly over to Winnie the Pooh. The line was surprisingly backed up and we had a decent wait even with a FP+. We got the sense that this was going to be a busy day. We had a great interaction with a very chatty CM at the load point who we talked with about the sheer size of WDW and how different Disneyland is. She congratulated us on our marriage and sent us into the Hundred Acre Wood. Pooh, as an attraction, was different enough that it felt fun and novel to us. We often find that when we go to Disneyland on a random afternoon, and it’s much more crowded than we expected, we go on Pooh because it’s really tucked away and has a short line. It’s cute!

We to this point had not been further into Adventureland than the Citrus Swirl cart, and so headed deeper into the jungle.

9tDjit370HgqxMNILqA9SqJmPLROPCMQH2Nv6SrEI6qklVo0WHa4X17BbrkcXoZloOfnW6AV8nUiNrXBtuiQwHaYSz3PCqHR8kzvOJvlvYN5kub5cGHPbkmO5mYUtez2-bV6iz7G


We spotted the spring roll cart and Tory really wanted to get an order after hearing so much hype from different bloggers and contributors. I was super skeptical of these as they seemed to me to just be fried greasy egg rolls you can find anywhere.
403966


We bought a pair of the cheeseburger ones and hopped in the Tiki Room line. One bite completely changed my mind on these. Yes, they were greasy, but the filling was insanely delicious. I immediately found it similar to the flavor from an In N Out burger (for those of you who have been lucky enough to visit the California institution). It had something to do with the onion and spice mix added to the beef. Every bite was better than the last. I devoured my roll and found myself wishing that we had bought another pair! They were that good!

We were quickly inside The Enchanted Tiki Room, which I described in my notes as “the same but with poorer sight lines.” It also felt like we were crammed in there more tightly. Our second sign that this was going to be a crowded day.

The third sign of the crowds , and one that we could not ignore, was the return line for the Jungle Cruise. We were shocked to see a CM standing in the middle of Adventureland with a sign that marked the end of the FP+ line. We hopped in and ended up waiting roughly 20 minutes to get a boat. To pass the time we took a survey from Disney that we had gotten regarding our day at Hollywood Studios. We also did some eavesdropping/people watching. There was a very grumpy family in line behind us and another in front of us. It’s amazing how much preplanning and strategizing you really need to do to have a successful vacation to the World. We overheard many conversations over the course of the trip that suggested that we had done more homework than many others, including return visitors.

The Jungle Cruise is my favorite ride at Disneyland (As you might remember, I did the skipper routine for a talent show in high school). Also, when it was closed for refurbishment a few years ago out on our coast, I made a point to go to “Skipper School”, a little show the Skips put on outside the attraction. So you could say I’m a Skip at heart at this point.

The WDW version of the Jungle Cruise might be even better than the Anaheim one! We got an excellent skipper who really went over the top and made it a great cruise. I had no idea that there would be a tunnel. Our Skip made a joke that we were headed into a gift shop because what Disney ride doesn’t end in a gift shop?

403967
403969

We had 20 minutes before our final FP+ of the day, and it was crystal clear at this point that the crowds were going to be rougher today. Instead of trying to find a short line, we found a spot across from the Pirates of the Caribbean entrance and enjoyed some people watching in the sun. Also, Tory channeled her inner pirate and love for rum in this photo.

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Pirates of the Caribbean was different enough to be enjoyable, but it’s short. We turned a corner and then all of a sudden we were at the unload point. It doesn’t feel like it wraps up like the Disneyland version. The photo they take is very jarring as well. The WDW version just doesn’t have the same charm that ours has. I found myself missing the bayou looking out towards the Blue Bayou or the very end that goes right by the queue line.


View attachment 403975

We got off PoTC and decided it wasn’t worth it to brave the crowds any longer. I know it was probably relatively not that crowded (I just saw some your photos from Spring Break, whoa!), but we weren’t keen on lines and peoples. It was early afternoon at this point, and we didn’t have a proper meal in our bellies (we split a waffle and had a spring roll). So, we headed to the bus stop with no real plans other than a need for sustenance. We got to talking and agreed that we were curious about the Port Orleans resorts and wanted to check them out for a potential return trip (Note: Coronado Springs won out as our return trip hotel for September). So after a short wait a bus for Port Orleans Riverside showed up and we hopped on board!

Up next: Where did we find sustenance? And what's all this about Nick not liking hammocks?

You two are my spirit animals! I love love love the Nutella waffles and cheeseburger spring rolls, AND Coronado is my favorite Moderate :)
Where did your wife get her lovely floral Minnie ears from? They are so cute!
 
You two are my spirit animals! I love love love the Nutella waffles and cheeseburger spring rolls, AND Coronado is my favorite Moderate :)
Where did your wife get her lovely floral Minnie ears from? They are so cute!
Aww, thank you!! The Nutella waffle and cheeseburger spring rolls were so good! And we're super excited about Coronado. Especially with the renovations. The new restaurant and lounges/bars look amazing at Coronado.

The ears are from a shop on Etsy! If you search "Snow White Mickey Ears", you can find them pretty easily!
 
Day 8: Nick doesn't feel comfortable in hammocks - continued

After a brief ride, we got off at the first stop at Port Orleans Riverside, as we had never been here and had no plans. We walked through the bayou side of the resort and found it very quiet and peaceful. It felt authentic to the Deep South, at least from the perspective of two lifelong Californians. We stumbled upon a quiet spot with a hammock and Tory hopped in.

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I am not too keen on hammocks and have a terrible sense of balance, so my attempt to join her inside the hammock was spectacularly short (and not long enough to get a photo). We took in the scenery for just a few moments before continuing on in search of food. We found out that the lounge that had the alcoholic beignets did not open until much later in the evening, which was disappointing (although looking back, the last thing we needed right then was sugar). Never deterred, we found ourselves in the heart of Port Orleans Riverside and saw the boat dock to Disney Springs. Knowing that food is plentiful in the Springs, we headed down to the dock where not 3 minutes later a boat pulled up.

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We grabbed a seat on Captain Gary’s boat and enjoyed a leisurely and scenic view down the river. The views were great and Captain Gary even threw in some jokes including mocking the terrible music that they pump into the boat. When we reached the lake in Disney Springs, he muted the background music entirely!
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The ride to Disney Springs was longer than we thought it would be and we found ourselves really hungry. Shortly after we found ourselves on the back patio/dock of BOATHOUSE. I had heard a few good things and the promise of a meal in the sun was too good to pass up. It was probably in the high 60s that day, the warmest it had been since our first AK day, and in the sun, it felt glorious! Tory and I grabbed two barstools and were quickly attended to. We each got drinks and ordered poke and their famous burger to split. One sip of my blackberry and bourbon cocktail with the sun and the breeze, plus the relative calm, I was sold on BOATHOUSE! Tory also greatly enjoyed her Strawberry Gin Fizz although based on the description we were expecting more of a Ramos Gin Fizz and less of a Tom Collins.

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While waiting for our food, I said some more cute stuff to Tory and we watched the boats go by out on the lake.

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Tory had recently read an article on the optimal vacation length being eight to eleven days as it takes at least 8 to completely let go of life stresses and be 100% relaxed. On the pier behind the BoatHouse on Day 8 of our trip, I found myself completely relaxed and stress-free. Time slowed down, the sky seemed bluer (it probably was, seeing as we come from the land of smog and hadn’t seen Florida sunshine in many days). That afternoon at Boathouse is one of the most vivid memories of the trip.

On top of all that the food was delicious too! The poke was fresh and well seasoned, and the burger definitely lived up to the hype. Cheesy, spicy, and fatty! What more could one ask for in a burger?

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I was feeling so at ease, I actually ordered a second drink, something I very rarely do when out to eat. Tory noticed too and dubbed that version of me, “Vacation Nick”. To top it off, when we closed our tab, our waitress asked if I wanted a to-go cup for the last quarter of my beer! What magical place is this?


We headed back out into the Springs and did a lot of wandering around before we popped into Amorette’s Patisserie as we had seen so many amazing things on social media. I think we were intending to just browse, but somehow we ended up buying a Mickey Mousse because it looked too amazing to pass up.

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We sat down in the afternoon sun and took some cute photos with it before digging in. The mousse was incredibly delicate and yet rich and chocolatey. We still had a dinner reservation later in the evening, but is there ever such a thing as too much food on vacation?

We grabbed a bus back to AKL where we spent a lazy few hours napping and watching the savannah. We had a 7:30 dinner reservation at Wilderness Lodge, and so around 6, we started getting ready. We called for a Lyft around 6:30 thinking we would have plenty of time to wander Wilderness Lodge prior to our ADR. For some reason it took a while for our driver to arrive, and then once he did, despite his claim that he spent most of his drive time going around property, he promptly got lost. We ended up out by The Wide World of Sports at some point. We eventually made it, much later than expected, and walked into Wilderness Lodge about 10 minutes before our ADR. Due to the stressful Lyft ride, I don’t think we truly appreciated the beauty of the Wilderness Lodge lobby. We just immediately tried to figure out where Artist Pointe was.

We checked in, and were seated within a few minutes. Storybook Dining at Artist Pointe was an ADR we booked about a month before our trip. It had only been around for maybe 6 weeks by the time we had dinner. We saw the menu online, and were intrigued. Plus, Snow White is Tory’s favorite princess, and how did we possibly have a Disney World Honeymoon without at least one character meal? We ended up dropping an ADR at Flying Fish, when we were able to secure this one. (DOn’t worry Flying Fish, we have you booked for September, and won’t cancel on you!).

Stay tuned to see our thoughts on this meal!
 
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Day 8: Nick doesn't feel comfortable in hammocks - continued 2.0

We're back and about to embark on our Storybook Dining adventure!

It slightly saddens me to say that this was our least favorite meal of the whole trip, as we really did want to like it. There was nothing inherently wrong with the whole experience, but just compared to every other sit down meal we had, this one felt blah. I’ll start by saying that the character interactions were excellent! Grumpy and Dopey were fun. I love the photo of Grumpy and Tory as my phone’s autofocus chose to focus on his giant nose in the foreground. The Evil Queen was phenomenal!

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Having never been to the original Artist Pointe, we don’t know what we missed out on. Despite the Enchanted Forest having a magical glow about it, it is clear that it was added overtop of an already existing gorgeous restaurant.
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We were seated in a weird spot, just at the front entry of the restaurant at a table for 2, right on the aisle. Not only does every guest pass by when entering or leaving the restaurant, but it was especially tight if characters or servers were passing by as well. On its own, this is a non-issue, but it was a series of little things like this that ended up disappointing us.

After so many great, leisurely-paced meals, this one somehow felt more rushed than ‘Ohana. It caught us a little off-guard. I think maybe we were expecting ‘Ohana to be fast, so we weren’t surprised when it was a quick-paced meal. But we weren’t expecting that here.

Our waitress greeted us, and promptly came back to take our entree order. She left without asking what we wanted to drink. When she came back with our appetizers we had to ask for water and to order a glass of red wine each. We never got refills on the water throughout the meal, but the wine was delicious! Both were from the Pacific Northwest. The whole wait staff seemed frazzled and confused. There were a lot of managers out surveying the situation. Hopefully, by now they have some of these service kinks worked out.

The shared appetizers on the lazy susan, while cute in theory, really don’t work at a two-top table. The tree is too big and gets in the way to the point that your view of your date is obscured. Note all the people walking by in the photo below!
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On to the food! From first look, it was all very pretty!

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The squash soup was delicious! Warm, thanksgiving flavors and super creamy. It really hit the spot. The marshmallow on a stick accompaniment really wasn’t necessary. The soup didn’t seem quite hot enough to actually make the marshmallow melt.

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The flavors on the Hunter’s Pie were good, although the filling in ours came out in one clump. It was more akin to a meatball inside a pastry than a true dumpling.

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Finally, the shrimp. I’m not sure who made the decision to put a spicy shrimp dish on a PNW-inspired seasonal menu. The piece of shrimp I got had no flavor and what little sauce was scattered in the bottom of the jar was marginally spicy. Was it supposed to be smoked? We were just confused.

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After hearing so many rave reviews about the Walk through Nature dish over the last month, Tory opted for that while I went with the Veal Shank. To accentuate the positive, to ensure this doesn’t sound like too much of a downer, the veal shank was the best thing we had all night!

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The veal was amazingly tender and had those warm braised flavors that a winter PNW plate should have. It paired perfectly with the greens and potatoes underneath it, along with my Pinot Noir. I would eat that dish again in a heartbeat. Tory’s main on the other hand was subpar. While the flavor was decent, it was not a balanced dish. The gnocchi and vegetables came in a cream sauce and then was topped with more cheese. It was described to us as a light pasta dish. It was actually incredibly heavy. Not to say that the squash or gnocchi wasn’t good; it would have been a chore to eat it all. Somehow, her vegetarian entree probably had more calories in it than my veal shank. Odd plate. Again, not bad, but there was a disconnect between what the server and menu described and what we had.

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The biggest issue of the night occurred when a server brought out our desserts. We were maybe halfway through our mains. Talk about rushed! We are not slow eaters and this was shocking to see. None of the desserts contained any warm or iced elements so they can sit, but it was really odd. Our server came by to check in and noted that they had already dropped off our desserts and said, “Some people like them early so they can take pictures of them.” That’s not a thing. We did take photos though!

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Another note: the size of the plates seemed so off for tables of two. Maybe they could have scaled the size of the tree down?

When we did get around to eating our desserts, we were fairly disappointed. The only decent one on the tree was the gooseberry pie. It was sufficiently tart and had a really good bottom crust. The meringue top piece seemed to be added on separately and really wasn’t fresh though.

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The other two were just bad. The Miner’s treasure was boxed cake mix dyed green layered with overly sweet frosting. I had two bites of mine, hoping that it got better with the second. It did not. Maybe just give that to the kiddos?

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The poison apple just seemed gimmicky, and, at least for us, did not have a sour center as described. It just tasted like white chocolate. It was super cute though!

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To end the meal, our server brought out the Hunter’s Gift to the Queen, which was caramel corn and chocolates served on liquid nitrogen. As scientists, we’ve worked with enough liquid nitrogen that the gimmick doesn’t really work on us. It’s a cute idea though and a fun way to end the meal! Unfortunately, the liquid nitrogen made the popcorn really stale.

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We ended with a trip to meet the Queen, which was an incredible experience! She spent a good deal of time with us, commenting on Tory’s ears and how she’s smart and I can keep her around haha. She even taught us the evil smirk, which I completely failed at in my attempt. Tory pulled it off pretty well!


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All of this to say, the meal on the whole was okay, but it just didn’t live up to the standard of the rest of the week. That’s okay, and it’s not a big deal. Hopefully, most of the issues we had have been worked out. Especially since our biggest issues were with the service. The menu has since changed, so I don’t know how useful our food reviews are now. This was the only ADR we had that I can’t see us ever doing again if given the chance.

We left Artist Pointe about an hour and a half after we were seated and didn’t have to walk too far to find our nightcap spot: Territory Lounge.

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We walked in before 9 PM to find it almost completely deserted. We grabbed a table and our waiter Sam quickly came over to chat with us. He was incredibly friendly, offered us marriage advice, and just generally tried to liven up what I have in my notes described as the “sleepiest bar on property”. I guess Wilderness Lodge doesn’t get a lot of foot traffic, and with the new family-centric meal at Artist Pointe, this place just stays pretty dead.

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The cocktail list didn’t look great, so we opted to split the flight of Pinots from the Willamette Valley. I appreciate that a bar in Florida even offered that as option. The wines were good, but between the heavy meal we just had and the dead atmosphere in the lounge, Tory and I found ourselves getting really sleepy. We chatted about our day and the trip while trying to figure out why the place was so dead. We called it a night after the wine flight and caught an uneventful Lyft ride back to AKL. They did have the mushroom soup on the bar menu though, so we might have to come back for that!

Stay tuned for our final full day, including a trip back to Animal Kingdom and a 5.5 hour experience at the Chef’s Table at Victoria and Albert’s!
 
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Oh yay! That's so exciting that you'll be able to go back for your 35th anniversary!

We met so many people on our trip who were celebrating anniversaries and they told us they had honeymooned at WDW too! Any marriage advice?
Here is our advice: Don't go to bed angry! In the long run, you won't remember what you were mad about, just that you were mad. If you kiss and make up, you can wake up each day with a smile!
:love2:
 
Day 9: FINGER LIMES

We woke up fairly early and sad that this was our last full day. However, we couldn’t be too sad, as the highlight of the trip and the reason we extended our trip by a day, was still to come this evening. We did both note that we were starting to miss our dog. He generally sleeps on the bed with us and it was different without him around. But we were sure he was having fun without us!

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We wanted to make the most of the last of our park time so we got ready fairly quickly, nibbled on our leftover pastries from Brunch at the Top and hopped a bus over to Animal Kingdom. It was fairly clear by that point that Animal Kingdom is far and away our favorite park, and so it worked out well that we had chosen two months ago to spend our last day here.


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Animal Kingdom is beautiful in the morning!


On another rather chilly morning, we made it inside the park for rope drop and headed straight back towards Expedition Everest. During our very short walk through the queue we witnessed the mom of the family in the line in front of us convince her two children that Expedition Everest is a slow moving train ride and not scary at all. Not sure how that turned out, but I’m guessing it went poorly. Still a great ride and can’t wait to hit it up again in September.

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We then wandered from Asia over to Harambe, Africa for our first FP of the morning on the Kilimanjaro Safari. Despite having been on a private safari a few days previously, this was still a real treat! Knowing that this exists and anyone who comes into the park has the opportunity to get close to these majestic creatures is so awesome.


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Our tour guide Jenny was knowledgeable and funny. At one point she had to catch herself from using a curse word after a springbok darted in front of our truck at the last second. Definitely felt like a true African safari at that point. You never know what animals are going to do! My favorite part was seeing the hippopotami. They just live such a fascinating life.

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Tory’s favorite was the giraffe who got so close to our vehicle!

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I was amazed at how long the whole experience is and can’t believe that we waited until our last day to do this. Somehow, despite waking up to animals every morning, we still didn’t get tired of them.

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After the long excursion, it was time to head over to Pandora for another ride on an Ikran. We ended up on the bottom level this time which felt like a different experience. It certainly allows you to focus in on what’s going on on the ground that you are flying over. Tory thought it was more intense. Our morning was really going amazingly well at this point, and we were so glad that we chose to spend our last park day at AK.

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At some point in the morning, we walked by Dawa Bar in Harambe to find them serving an African mulled wine on what was another chilly morning. We decided to grab a “mug” each and it really hit the spot. We sat outside the bar and watched an African drum team perform. I have no idea of when in the day this happened, as it’s not in my notes, but we have photos that prove it, so I’ll add it in here. Tory loves how I look like a giant drinking out of the mug!

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We wandered around Pandora some just taking in all the sights and decided to try the much talked about Satu’li Canteen. They had just opened for the day, so we walked right up without needing to mobile order. The smell is so inviting when you first walk in. We opted to split a bowl with the crispy tofu, potato hash, and green onion vinegarette. This was an excellent choice. The bowl was a very generous portion and felt hearty without being too sinful. Considering we were going to be feasting like kings that evening, it felt good to have something that was more akin to what we would eat at home for a light lunch. The tofu was cooked and seasoned well and we appreciated the use of the sweet potatoes in the hash. Sweet potatoes are underrated. The pearls were unnecessary.


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After a quiet and relaxed lunch in the Canteen dining hall we wandered back out in to the park and back to Everest for one more trip up into the forbidden mountain.

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After surviving an encounter with the yeti for the second time that day, I started to get a little emotional about how we were leaving tomorrow, and how amazing AK is. We didn’t get a chance to see Rivers of Light which, given my new passionate love for the park, would have been a great experience. However, we had the chance to wander into the seating area to kill some time. Tory and I took in the view across the lake looking back towards Africa. We talked about our vacation, our marriage, and life in general. It was a really great moment in near solitude, as no one else apparently appreciates sitting in empty bleacher seats for a show that doesn’t start for 10 hours. Just us, I guess.

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We had one more ride left for the day, and it was none other than FOP. Because of the whole snafu of our Premier passes not syncing when we went to book FPs back in November, the cast member on the phone was able to secure us a FP for FOP for this day (60+8). Then, four hours later when the tech issue was solved, there were still FOP FPs available, so we were able to snag another set. So yes, we did ride FOP twice on our last day. Even on our fourth ride on a banshee of the trip the beauty of Pandora was not lost on us. In fact, knowing that this was my last chance for a long time, I vowed to just soak in the majesty and beauty of the ride, and not think about what a technical marvel it was.

It was now a little after noon, and we had 5 hours before needing to leave our hotel for V&A, but we weren’t quite ready to leave the park. So while walking out of Pandora, we saw the wooden doors and understated sign for Nomad Lounge beckoning us in. We still had plenty of time, so we agreed to pop in for a drink after having loved our dinner at Tiffins so much. We easily found a comfy sofa to plop down on. My eye was immediately drawn up to the ceiling where a series of travel related questions hung from banners waiting to prompt conversation from the travelers below. Coupled with the memories hung from the walls, I immediately fell in love with the concept of the bar. A place for travelers to take a load off and discuss what they have seen and learned out in the world. Joe Rohde, you’ve done it again!

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We quickly found out that the drinks are also top notch too! Our server was very friendly and explained the menu to us, even recommending some of his favorite drinks. Later on, we told him we were going to V&A that night and he told us all about the time he went and how, after 12 wine pairings, he had no recollection of how he got home! He knows he didn’t drive though.

Tory got the Annapura Zing which comes with a lotus glow cube floating on top. For as much drinking we had done on this trip, this was the first glow cube we had come across! Tory enjoyed her drink and compared it to a Mule but with gin. I got the Tempting Tigress which was essentially a spicy old fashioned. I really enjoyed the flavors in this and was the second best bourbon drink I got on the trip (with the best one still to come!).

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We also got a little snack to hold us over until dinner: the bread service. Don’t worry, this is not the Sanaa bread service, as we would be silly to fill up on that. Instead it was a series of three dips with different types of crackers. Everything was absolutely delicious and fit with the vibe of the lounge.

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We had a lazy hour taking in the space and discussing travel experiences. Nomad Lounge is an amazing respite, and we can’t wait to go back on our next trip. Hopefully it will be much warmer and we can sit out on the patio, because that view out towards the jungle looked amazing!

We said our goodbyes to Animal Kingdom and grabbed a bus back to AKL.

We still had over three hours to get ready so I took some time to, sadly, start packing and reorganizing. We had heard a tip to bring a collapsible clothes hamper if you have a long trip, and found one super cheap on Amazon. This was a great idea, as it helped keep the room from looking like a complete mess. However, at the end of the trip, you have to figure out how to get all these crumpled dirty clothes back into the packing cubes, which is less fun.

I ironed my dress shirt and suit pants while Tory got ready. We were getting so excited and giddy. Victoria and Albert’s Chef’s Table on our honeymoon?! It’s really happening!

Shortly before 5 PM we caught a Lyft over to the Grand Floridian. We walked into the lobby for the second time on the trip, but this time felt different. We were dressed up and felt much more at home in the stately lobby. We took some pictures around the staircase and sat for a few minutes on a couch before heading up to the second floor.

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Doesn’t my wife look amazing?









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STAY TUNED FOR THE DINING EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME FOR THESE TWO NEWLYWEDS!
 
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I fell behind but have had an awesome time this morning catching up. Very anxious to hear your thoughts on V&A but otherwise sad to see this winding down. Will you write another one in Sept? :flower3:

In random order:

Totally agree with you on the state of Epcot security at the main entrance. Total cluster. And the shops in Italy are a lost opportunity.

Congrats on drinking around the World! Very impressive. And how fun to have your buddy join you. He captured some really great shots.

I feel badly you didn’t get the best weather FL has to offer. If it’s any consolation, in Sept you’ll probably be sweating your patooties off. On the positive side, probably plenty of pool time.

Nomad Lounge in AK and Boathouse Dockside Bar at DS are gems of spots. I haven’t tried Jock Linday’s yet.

Too bad on Artist’s Point. That “tree” does look way too big for your table.

Definitely try to see American Adventure next time - very moving.

I’m sure there was more I wanted to comment on, sorry for stream of consciousness reply. Truly enjoying your report and descriptions!!
 
I fell behind but have had an awesome time this morning catching up. Very anxious to hear your thoughts on V&A but otherwise sad to see this winding down. Will you write another one in Sept? :flower3:

In random order:

Totally agree with you on the state of Epcot security at the main entrance. Total cluster. And the shops in Italy are a lost opportunity.

Congrats on drinking around the World! Very impressive. And how fun to have your buddy join you. He captured some really great shots.

I feel badly you didn’t get the best weather FL has to offer. If it’s any consolation, in Sept you’ll probably be sweating your patooties off. On the positive side, probably plenty of pool time.

Nomad Lounge in AK and Boathouse Dockside Bar at DS are gems of spots. I haven’t tried Jock Linday’s yet.

Too bad on Artist’s Point. That “tree” does look way too big for your table.

Definitely try to see American Adventure next time - very moving.

I’m sure there was more I wanted to comment on, sorry for stream of consciousness reply. Truly enjoying your report and descriptions!!

We're absolutely planning on writing another one in September! It's been a lot of fun reliving all the fun memories from our honeymoon. We can't wait for it to be warm this time around! We're definitely building in a water park morning/afternoon and plenty of pool time!

Seriously though, what is with EPCOT security? Truly baffling. It was worth it to accomplish Drinking Around the World! Although, we will never do that again. We're excited to spend more time exploring the pavilions and seeing shows like American Adventure.

We want to believe that we just went to Jock Lindsay's on an off day. If it wasn't pouring rain, I'm sure the sipping a drink out on the patio would have made for a really nice evening!
 
I've been lurking but just here to say that your trip report is one of the best ones I've read!! Please do one again in September :)
Thanks! That means so much!! We're definitely planning on writing another one in September! We've got some exciting dining reservations at Flying Fish, Sebastian's Bistro, and Toledo! Plus, it'll be EPCOT Food and Wine, so I'm sure we'll have a lot to cover! We're still debating on Jaleo... Heard some good things and some bad things and then a lot of nothing.
 
Hello followers of the Tipsy Ducks in Love Trip Report! We're back for our Chef's Table dinner at V&As!

After taking a handful of lobby/staircase photos, we walked over to the check in stand for Citricos and V&A. We were welcomed and told to have a seat and that we would be escorted in at our reservation time at 5:30. Shortly after, the hostess from V&A came out through the glazed glass doors, checked us in, explained a bit about the evening, and said she would be back to get us in a few minutes. At this point we were just so excited.

For a bit of background, Tory and I are not new to fine dining. Outside of Disney, it’s probably our second biggest hobby. We watch a lot of documentaries on chefs and dream about going to Michilin star restaurants. We save and plan such that we can have one fine dining experience a year. We are both adventurous eaters (as I’m sure our readers have seen throughout this TR!) and we enjoy having reasons to get dressed up.

As an aside we’ve been lucky enough to do the Chef’s Counter tasting menu at Napa Rose at the Grand Californian three times and would recommend it to anyone! $100 for a seven course tasting menu is a relative steal!

All of this to say, that V&A wasn’t going to be a foreign and uncomfortable experience to us. We sometimes read on blogs or other forums about how people feel that V&A is stuffy and overpriced for the portions. Tasting menu plates are meant to be small and if they weren’t you would be stuffed by course two. I can totally understand how having never been to another tasting menu experience before and then coming to V&A would be overwhelming and almost disappointing in a way. I totally understand that fine dining isn’t for everyone and regardless of the quality, some people can’t wrap their heads around spending just under $1000 for a dinner for two people (which was our bill at the end of the night).

So, back to the experience. And that’s really what it is: an experience. Yay for customized menus!

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Promptly at 5:30, we were invited in by the hostess. The first thing I noticed was how dimly lit and ornately decorated the main dining room was. Marble, dark woods, and an ornate carpet. It felt very appropriate for the meal. However, we weren’t here long at all. In fact, after about 15 steps, we were led through a metal door and into the kitchen. Our hostess called out that guests coming through and immediately every chef on the line or doing prep stopped what they were doing. As we passed through the kitchen, everyone greeted us and congratulated us on our marriage. It was very surreal. We have had some great dining experiences before, but we have never been personally greeted by every member of the kitchen staff.


We were walked to the
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back side of the kitchen where we found the Chef’s Table. A large dark wood table sitting in the middle of this dining room that seemed to be cut out of the kitchen. There were awards and magazine articles on the cabinets and walls, and when we sat down, we had an unbelievable view into the kitchen. We were only separated from them by a half wall.

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After being greeted by the kitchen staff, our two waiters, Al and Amy, came to introduce themselves and explain how the evening would progress. I’ll take a moment to gush about how excellent Al and Amy were. After that point, we never saw the two of them together again, but they always seemed to know what was going on at our table and in the kitchen. They would alternate bringing us the wine with our courses and checking in on us. It was seamless. We got to know both of them over the course of the evening as they shared their experiences in the restaurant industry and their takes on food and wine with us. We learned that every member of the wait staff was at least a level one sommelier, with Amy currently studying to be a level 3. It was obvious that they both knew wine, but didn’t act pretentious about it. Tory and I like wine, but have minimal knowledge of varietals and the winemaking process. They were both more than happy to share their knowledge with us.

That went for the entire staff, from the waitstaff, to the head maître d', to the cooks and executive chef. If Tory or I ever had a question, all of them were more than willing to answer, or if they didn’t know, find out for us. Some of the many things we were able to learn about over the course of the nearly 5.5 hour dinner were Iberico ham, finger limes, making stock, dealing with fine dining critics and writers, and advancing in the culinary industry.

Once we got settled and had our menu finalized, Chef Aimee came by to congratulate us and welcome us to the kitchen. She poured a glass of champagne for each of us and then herself, toasted us on our marriage, quickly downed her glass, and headed back into the kitchen. She seemed so cool!

Then the food started coming out and we were excited!

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For reference, here was our menu for that night:

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Our amuse-bouche was imperial caviar with oysters. Neither Tory nor I had ever tried caviar before, and were excited that it was on the menu as part of our amuse bouche for the evening. The caviar did not disappoint! The sauce it was served in was incredible and it paired well with the oysters. Plus it was fun to break the cracker in to the bowl!

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We also got three different breads, along with butter and a salt and pepper sampler!

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The second course was lobster with a finger lime sauce. This was spectacular! From the presentation, to the playful way you got to pick parts and eat it to the flavors. I still think about this dish! We actually asked the chef who presented it to us what finger limes were. He started to describe them and then suddenly said, “I’ll be right back.” He promptly returned with a finger lime from the pantry that he had cut in half. He showed us the seeds/pods of lime juice they continued and how they were able to then top the salmon with them. That was a really cool touch!

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At this point, Al came by to ask us if there was anything else he could get us. I said, almost jokingly, because everything was going amazingly, that an old fashioned would be nice. Al replied, “Say no more,” and disappeared. In what seemed like 90 seconds, Al returned with an Old Fashioned. Folks, this was the best cocktail of the entire trip. There were at least 4 luxardo cherries muddled at the bottom, but it still was balanced and tasted of bourbon. I complimented Al and he said that the bartender at Citrico’s made it.

The next two fish courses were phenomenal. Al told us before setting the first one down that folks generally have a strong preference for one or the other. The first was a tooth fish that they had flown in from the Mediterranean served in an Iberico Ham and cabbage sauce! We had never had Iberico ham before let alone in a sauce. Never in a million years would I have thought to pair ham with fish, but amazingly it worked! The sauce had so much depth and fattiness from the pork that I soaked it up with some bread (of which we served three different kinds). We were able to talk to one of the prep cooks ater this course about what exactly makes Iberico ham special.

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The next course was one we opted to add on. It was a locally caught turbot in a meyer lemon sauce. This was a much more classic flavor pairing, but was executed amazingly well. The sauce was light and bright and the fish was cooked to perfection.

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Tory was so impressed by my Old Fashioned that she wanted a cocktail to pair with the turbot since Al said that there was not a planned wine pairing. Tory asked the bartender to surprise her with a gin drink to pair with the fish. Again, Al said, “Say no more,” and when the Turbot came out, so did a gin drink for Tory. It was also phenomenal. That interaction I think epitomized the level of detail and care with which the staff acted towards us.

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Tory and I did debate on which of the two fish courses was better and eventually agreed to disagree. I voted for the tooth fish for the creativity and Tory preferred the turbot which was executed so well. I think we both felt like judges on Chopped or Top Chef in that moment.

At some point, Boris, the maître d' for the evening, came back and greeted us. Over the course of the evening, he would pop by a few times and talk to us about wine and the history of the restaurant.

After the battle of the fish, Chef Aimee came back to our table and offered us a bonus dish. It was just a few bites of something they had been working on for their next menu. From what we gathered/remembered, it was a hazelnut gnocchi with acorns. Not entirely sure, but I can assure you it was good!

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