Cue the Music: How we MADE money and slept with Ariel! Done!

[SEASONK]

Hey! What are your dates and where are you staying?

We are leaving Arcadia at lunch on the 16th and will be at WDW from the 17th-21st.

 

[mickeystoontown]

We are leaving Arcadia at lunch on the 16th and will be at WDW from the 17th-21st.

Our trip dates overlap! We'll be leaving our house after work on the 14th and will be at Disney the 15th through the 24th. We are at Movies this trip.

 

[SEASONK]

Our trip dates overlap! We'll be leaving our house after work on the 14th and will be at Disney the 15th through the 24th. We are at Movies this trip.

We are staying at POP again this time. This is my 3rd time there, but I don't mind it so much with renovated rooms.

 

[jenseib]

We really liked River of Lights. I know a lot of people don't, but I thought it was pretty.

 

[Steppesister]

All caught up again. I agree. While I didn't ever see the Jungle Book show, I was underwhelmed with ROL. It's pretty but lacks story big time.

I love the trails too and spend a lot of time on them each trip. Even the bats, which are super cool!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

My cousin owns and lake house/cabin in south Louisiana and they let us use it for free! I'll take free any day. It was on a private island and was accessible via golf cart only.

That sounds awesome!

Saturday, we drove a little over an hour to New Orleans. Now, I've always said "I ain't lost nothin' in New Orleans so I ain't got a reason to go back." It has been over ten years since I've visited that area. @Captain_Oblivious I believe shares those same sentiments after his family's trip through the area.

Been there once. Crossed it off the list. I'm good.

Back at the lake house, we ate a meal worthy of a 34th wedding anniversary. Chicken salad sandwiches.

As we were walking to the car, John suggested that we take the tour. I could tell that he didn't want to but was asking to be a loving husband who wanted to fulfill his wife's desire to see a ghost peeping and creeping about one of the most haunted places in America. I told him that we didn't have to and I could see his relief.

Good man. Nice of you to have mercy on him, too.

Let me tell you, I know how kids get lost at Disney. Parents don't watch them half of the time. They were on their phone or talking and the kids were running from here to there and the parents weren't even looking. I know little kids need to burn off some energy but parents should at least watch where there kids are.

But I need the phone to get my Fast Passes!

What did we think about Rivers of Light? It was okay. It wasn't our favorite. What did the folks in front of us think about it? Right after it was over, the guy in front of us said "It ain't no Jungle Book".

I've heard so many people say that. We wound up skipping the show altogether.

 

[amazingact21]

I've heard that Rivers of Light is a bit underwhelming. I guess now you can say you've seen it for yourself and don't have to worry about trying to catch it again if you don't want.

 

[theskyisawake]

Just found your report. I've read a few of your others and I'm glad to see another! We will be there for Thanksgiving too! It's my first time going during that time and I'm a little nervous about the crowds!

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I just found this trip report

 

[rndmr2]

I have been on the DIS very little since mid January until the last few weeks but I am caught up with your TR. Sounds like a great trip so far. great pics of the animals at AK I Love that one of the tiger, beautiful!! I do remember seeing some things on FB from this one and the most recent one, too.

Part of why I haven't been on the boards (besides being REALLY busy with working ) is because I didn't have a trip planned, not even a hope of one for a while and while I do like to live vicariously through TR's sometimes it makes me more sad that I won't be there anytime soon . I did go to Alaska over the summer so that was great . Now, however, I DO have a trip in the works, although it is NOT WDW, it is Disneyland PARIS!!

It will be killing 2 birds with one stone, though. Crazy enough, the main reason I am going (with the hubby) is to go to a concert of my (recently rediscovered) Favorite Band (and it's gorgeous Lead Singer) a-ha. They are a band of 3 guys from Norway. You may or may not remember them but they were really big here in the mid 80's (Take on Me....) and I was a huge fan when I was in my tween/teen years. They dropped out of sight here after about 1988 or so but stayed really popular in Europe (and since the early 90's in South America, too) all these 30+years. I heard an old song of theirs on the radio in January (it was Not "Take on Me") and that sent me to YouTube to listen to some of their old songs and OMG I found recent things!! 2015, 2017, etc. I almost fell off my chair when I saw how gorgeous Morten (the lead) still was and how awesome they still sounded (they are all in their mid 50's now),That sent me on a mission to find and absorb everything that I missed out on over the last 30 years. So when I heard about a new Tour they are doing in Oct/Nov 2019, I knew I had to go. The only way my hubby would let me/go with me to see his competition, LOL was if there was more than just the concert as a reason to go so that's where DLP comes in. I could get my Disney fix, too!! We are going to stay in the DLP resort for a few days and then take a train into Paris to see the concert. We are pricing flights now and DLP has a nice deal going on for next fall that sounds really reasonable that includes hotel, park hopper tix and their version of the dining plan (which is a little confusing but I am learning, thankfully there is a DLP board here in the DIS)

Anyway, sorry for my book, LOL! Looking forward to the rest of your TR and then if you do one for this year's trip, too. I like All Star Movies, it's my favorite of the All Stars but I really prefer Pop Century as far as the Values go.

 

[Steppesister]

Now, however, I DO have a trip in the works, although it is NOT WDW, it is Disneyland PARIS!!

YAY!! That's fantastic news!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Hello darlin'. It's been a long time!

The title of this chapter could apply to our trip or it could apply to the report itself since I obviously went missing again. I hope that you are all ready for Santa Clause to come ho ho ho'ing down the chimney tomorrow night. John and I went to the local animal shelter yesterday and made a donation of dog food, cat food, kitty litter, blankets, bleach and cookies for the shelter worker/volunteers. I've been helping Mama with all of her Christmas shopping and preparations.

I forgot to mention that we went to Walt Disney World too! Yep, went back for Thanksgiving again. This time, our kids joined us three days into the trip. The day that we left for Disney, John had an MRI and we left directly from the hospital and started the drive to Disney. Four days after we got back, he had a 24 hour EEG. And, after that, we've made two more 60 mile round trips to the doctor to figure out why he has been having break through seizures. But, enough about what's been going on here. Let's get back to the trip report.

Hello darlin'. It's been a long time!​

​

Today, we were going to the Magic Kingdom! I was like a little kid with ants in their pants and was ready to get going. While John was finishing up, I went outside to take a gander at our surroundings. This was looking to the right while standing at our doorway.


Looking ahead but a little to the right.

And ahead but a little to the left. In case you have forgotten (which wouldn't be surprising giving how long it's been since I started the report), we were upgraded to the Jazz Inn area of the resort. We had paid for a standard room but were put in a king bed accessible room even though we didn't need an accessible room.


John finished up his gettin' ready routine and we started walking to the bus stop. We, once again, liked the way that the lines operated at the value resorts. Just one line for the Magic Kingdom bus. Not long after we got in line, a bus came and we had to stand but, we were on our way to a magical place so we didn't mind.


I don't know about y'all but the buzzy fuzzy excited feeling starts as soon as I step off the bus at the Magic Kingdom. I can just feel the excitement in the air. John was able to go through the no bags line while I, on the other hand, had to go through bag check and then through the metal detector. I found him standing underneath the one tree and we set off.

Immediately upon walking under the railroad station, this gorgeous tree greeted us. It had been 15 long years since we had seen the park decorated in its glorious Christmas finest.




As we walked down Main Street U.S.A., I oohed and aahed at the decorations including this cute Mickey shaped beauty.


At some point, I stopped to take a selfie of John and I. Not a great one but it would do in a pinch.



Enough selfies, we had a fastpass to get to.

Continued in next post​

 

[mickeystoontown]

Hello darlin'. It's been a long time!

Our first Fastpass was for a classic and one of my favorites, Pirates of the Caribbean





Me wants the redhead!




The next picture in my phone camera roll is this one. At the time, I had a reason for taking this screenshot but I can't remember why I did. Maybe I was just documenting the time and date.


We would soon have to venture over to Frontierland for our next Fastpass selection of the day.

Continued in next post​

 

[mickeystoontown]

Hang on to yer hats!

Over in Frontierland, there's the wildest ride in the wilderness.We were about to do some whoopin' and hollerin' on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
​

Take a good look at this picture. Notice something out of whack? John isn't wearing his hat. Very rarely does that occur....in church, at a funeral or during the pledge. And, on a roller coaster.


Can I stop here for a second? Wait, I'm writing this report so I can stop if I want. Many of y'all have read several of my trip reports so you may recall this story. Some may be first timers.

In my pictures, you may notice that one side of my face looks different than the other. One eye is a little droopy. One side of my face is puffier. That's because I have Bell's Palsy. The doctor has no idea what caused me to have it and why the long lasting effects. Many who suffer from Bell's Palsy recover relatively quickly and may never have any other problems from it. My nerves didn't grow back correctly thus the puffiness and the droopy eye. That same droopy eye waters a lot and when I am tired, it sags even more. Anyway, if you see that I look all whompy, that's why.

Okay, back to our wild ride. I took that one picture of John and I as we were going up the tracks. These were snapped during the ride. I had both my camera and my phone so these may be out of order.













I say this a lot but Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a favorite. Hey a gal can never have too many favorites!

**Up next: Howdy there! Well stomp my feet and give me a fajita!

​

 

[mickeystoontown]

Howdy there! Well stomp my feet and give me a fajita!

When I make Fastpasses, I try to keep them all in one area of the park so that we aren't zig zagging and criss crossing too much. Today, in my binder, with tabs, I had three fastpasses and all were in a smallish circle. One was in Adventureland, one was in Frontierland and the other would be in Liberty Square. But, it wasn't time to use the third so we decided to go see some bears. Not just any kind of bear but Country Bears. Talented ones too.


And because I know that Lacey's favorite bear is Big Al, I had to take a picture and send it to her. You know because we were at Walt Disney World without our kids.

Our stomachs were growlin' like a bear (get that....like a bear) and we still had time to kill. Pecos Bill's was next door and it wasn't too busy we got in line and ordered up some grub. The toppings bar at Pecos Bill's never disappoints. We loaded up on cheese, guacamole, salsa, peppers and onions.


When we order, we like to order different entrees so that we can sample from each other's dishes. Although these look very similar, they were different but I can't remember what they were. I take that back, one was a fajita plate.





It was a lot of food and I couldn't eat all of mine but I did put a dent into it though. Fully satisfied, we were ready to set out for our third Fastpass of the day.

**Up next: Where are we going? Right hearse!​

 

[mickeystoontown]

Where are we going? Right hearse!


John leaves the majority of the trip planning to me. I know what he likes to do and plan accordingly. And then there are things that I like to do that he could care less about doing but he puts up with because I like it. This was one of the later. So, when John asked me "Where are we going?" as we walked towards Liberty Square, he truly had no idea. But as we got in line, I answered "right hearse".


Haunted Mansion is not one of the "must do" attractions for John but, like I said, he'll do it because he knows that I like it.




I tried to snap a pic of "there's always my way" but it just came out black. Again, I was taking pictures with both my camera and my phone so these may be out of order.







Haunted Mansion is another classic and I'm glad that John will tolerate it for me.

**Up next: Take a gander at that shingle would ya!​

 

[jrmint427]

I’m joining very late but all caught up now!

I can’t believe it but I had no idea the flamingo island was in the shape of Mickey until I read your TR!

You might be the first person I know of who likes Stitch’s ride... I couldn’t believe people brought children on that ride and would never have gone on it again even if it didn’t close!

We also went for Thanksgiving this year. I’m looking forward to the rest of this TR and will join in for your next!!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Take a gander at that shingle would ya!

As I said, it had been years and years since we had visited Walt Disney World during the holidays. Back then, they didn't decorate for Christmas until the day after Thanksgiving. We had gone to the Magic Kingdom the day after Thanksgiving and that was the extent of our experience with Disney Christmas decorations.

So, when I was working on our plans, in a binder....with tabs, I factored in some time to visit some of the resorts should we want to. Since we had done all three Fastpasses and we had more days to spend at Magic Kingdom, it seemed like a good time to take the monorail loop to the Grand Floridian. But, before we did, I checked the My Disney Experience app and searched for another Fastpass. Peter Pan's Flight was available so I snagged it and then we were on our way.

We didn't stop at the Contemporary or the Polynesian because we were set on seeing the giant gingerbread house at the Grand. Apparently, I didn't take a picture from above. I am guessing (and probably correctly) that I didn't because I can't get close to the railing on the second floor. My fear of heights kicks in as soon as I walk into a building and I can see down.

The gingerbread house was so large that they actually had a store inside of it. A store that only the castmembers could enter and sell gingerbread treats from a desk.

I walked around the house at least three times just looking at all of the works of gingerbread, chocolate and sugar art.





Here is it Christmas Even (now not then) and I have to confess that I am not a gingerbread fan. I don't dislike it but if there's another treat to choose from, gingerbread doesn't win out. But, this was Disney gingerbread. I mean, come on, you gotta try Disney gingerbread. We got in the line which was about six or seven people long and decided to get a shingle. I seem to recall that there was several different flavors of shingles to choose from. We went with the traditional gingerbread. Take a gander at that shingle would ya!


We peaked into the shops at Grand Floridian and then took the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom. Oh I forgot about this little stowaway. This is Happy and he was extremely happy to be onboard the monorail.

We went back through bag check and the tapstiles and were back in the happiest place on Earth. It wasn't quite time for our Fastpass so we did a little window shopping. At the time, Hunter was seeing someone who was a hair dresser and a Disney lover so when I saw this golden dinglehopper, I knew that I had to get it for her. Instead of sending it to package pickup or resort pickup, I tucked it into my bag and off we went fly high above London.

I've never gotten a good picture on this attraction but it certainly doesn't stop me from trying.



**Continued in next post​

 

[Shellyred8]

Just joining the thread. Love your trip report! We just got back from WDW a couple of weeks ago and heard what the story was with the "Monkey with the rash on his buttocks". When they first introduced him to the female, they hit it off quite quickly. Then a couple of additional females were introduced. Turns out the male didn't know how to treat the females (he was too rough with them) and they broke his tail. They ended up having to amputate the tail. This was the story that was told to us by the CM at the time. It sounds like they are still amicable, but the male mostly keeps his distance now.

I, too, had no idea the flamingo island was in the shape of Mickey! I'll have to watch for it on our next trip!

I had always heard how "bad" the All-Star resorts were. Then I stayed there once. The rooms were fine and I really liked the grounds. They do such a good job at their landscaping. I love the view of the woods and the paths from your room!

Looking forward to reading more updates!

 

[jrmint427]

But, this was Disney gingerbread. I mean, come on, you gotta try Disney gingerbread.

I’m also not a big fan of gingerbread. I’ll eat it but it’s not something I ever crave. Was Disney gingerbread better than regular gingerbread?