Frolicking in the Rain- A solo trip report 9/26-10/2

[LockShockBarrel]

Howdy do. I'm back again for another trip report. I hope to get this done pretty quickly because the trip was only a little over 2 weeks ago so people that are heading down soon can have some pretty up to date information and reviews. Keep in mind I said "hope", not "promise"

I already did my dining report so if you're only here for food info or just enjoy my oh so special way of putting stuff, you can head over there. http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3340776 a full dining report starring me!

So let's jump in. I started planning in late March/early April and had a few different sets of dates in mind. I really wanted to try Boardwalk this time around but unfortunately they didn't have any points availability that ran straight through when I was planning to go (in other words they had like 2 nights, then nothing, then 2 nights open and switching back and forth was silly to me). I ended up at Old Key West which I'd stayed at once before in 2011 and really enjoyed. It's a beautiful resort with large rooms and a mellow theme, and since I was staying longer than my last solo trip I figured the larger room was warranted. I rent points through a friend of mine, and for what she charges me staying at OKW this time was actually cheaper than I could get a room at a value resort.

I also got a great deal on a flight, direct both ways between Buffalo and MCO for $263 total. I was periodically checking the prices and just watched it go up up up. First time I double checked was 360 something...then in the 500s...then in the 700s!! I couldn't believe it. I checked on the days all the websites tell you you can get the lowest price but it never got under $721 after that. I was so glad I grabbed my tickets when I did because well..because!

9-26-2014 ---
It was a full flight to MCO which was sort of interesting. I was called to board and had a whiny father asking me to give up my seat so he and his daughter could sit together. The kid was probably 6 or 7 and it was her first time flying, so I get that they should sit together but frankly I booked my seat in a specific spot and with a window for a reason. They were definitely on their way to Disney (the kid was chanting "disney disney disney) which leads me to believe they had enough time to try to get seats together as opposed to a last minute emergency booking. I politely told him no which led him to stand helpless in the aisle waiting for someone to offer their seats. He managed to find someone to give up her seat which actually ended up working out in my favorite because lo and behold she was a travel agent that specialized in Disney vacations so we sat and chatted the entire flight.

The flight went by quickly with my new buddy and soon enough we had landed. I somehow got turned around in the airport and ended up on the wrong side to get to Magical Express. I got myself back on track and had about a 15 minute wait for my bus. I was thankful I was already wearing my Magicband because that's all they needed for me to get on the bus. This was my first trip with the bands so I was a little clueless where and when I needed it aside from the obvious.

Old Key West was the first stop which was awesome (I get a rush out of being first, its silly but its true). I was actually the only person to get off there which was a little surprising with how full the bus was. The resort was pretty bumping when I got there, lots of people waiting for buses and ME and hanging around the Hospitality House. Keep in mind this was at about 11am. I had checked in online and was really hoping my room would be ready so I could download half the crap in my backpack but unfortunately it wasn't. The CM who checked me in was very apologetic about it. He got me set up with the pincode to my magic band (I had apparently set on online but completely forgot what it was). Everything was great and he says "I can have them text you when the room is ready and I can tell you know what building you'll be in. It's right here *circles building on the map*"....Building 29. Anything but building 29. My stomach dropped a little and I thought "no...there's no way I'll end up in 2911, I'm not in a one bedroom this time. It's fine!". Ok so there's a little story about why I was dreading this so much, to see it, please see my 2011 trip report.

I decided since I had no idea what time the room would be ready I would just head straight to the parks. I had everything I needed and really my backpack wasn't heavy, just big since I had my hoodie and whatnot stuffed into it. I waited at the Hospitality House for about 10 minutes for my bus to MK.

I was actually in the park before noon and got through security and the turnstiles pretty easily but there seemed to be a lot of people that had no idea what to do with their Magic Bands. I don't know if it was a lot of first timers or what but I was surprised and now a little nervous that I'd find backed up lines with people that were having issues.

Since my FPs didn't start til after my lunch, I decided to just go wherever the crowds weren't which led me to Tomorrowland. I pulled a typical tourist and just went into the first thing I saw with a short line landing me at Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. It was a good show, everyone that ended up on camera or that participated with the monsters played along. I've been to showings that didn't have willing participants which always seem disappointing.

I figured a ride on the TTA (Peoplemover...whatever) was a good option so I didn't get caught in a line before lunch. I got a few decent pictures and honestly its one of my favorite rides. It always mellows me out and gives me a chance to relax especially later in the trip.

I was afraid of being late for my Be Our Guest FP so I headed there next. Good lord what a mess that area is around meal times. I find new Fantasyland confusing to navigate around and the giant crowd of people was interesting to try to get through. I can't imagine what it's like when the park is in peak season.

After lunch (I told you, go to the dining report for all that jazz ok?) it was a big sprinkly and humid. The next line I happened on was the Journey under the Little Mermaid or whatever it's actually called. I'd never been on it but its the movie I remember best from my childhood (I wore out not 1 but 2 VHS tapes of it) and Ursula is my spirit animal so I had to ride. Luckily the wait was only about 10 minutes.

Earlier I could hear the new Mine Train running but couldn't hear it now. I knew that didn't bode well and when I finally got around to the entrance...like really I walked around the whole friggin thing trying to find it... it was closed due to lightning. The weird thing (at least to me) was that they were letting people stay in the line until the ride was allowed to operate again. I guess they don't want to piss people off that have already been waiting but really? people would rather stand in that giant crowd of humanity rather than just come back? There was a bit of a ruckus when I was figuring out what was going on, a non english speaking woman was trying to get into the line but was told no by the CMs at the front. She kept trying to push through and luckily another family who spoke the language this woman spoke were able to translate. The woman's teenage daughter and young son had "missing" for 2 hours. She thought they were in line for the mine train but her cell phone wasn't putting through the call to her daughter's phone so she didn't know for sure where they were. She just wanted to look for them. The CMs did eventually walk her up through the line to try to find them. This is another reason why I don't understand letting people stay in line, sure there's cell phones but clearly they're not infallible. I asked the CM what I should do because I had a FP for the ride and she said there would be an open ended FP I could use for anything so I figured I'd swing around later. I like that they do this for rides that are down, its a good way to appease people so long as they understand if they use it, it's done. I think they'd be better off leaving that FP in your lineup with an open ended return and adding the other one to use for another attraction. It'd eliminate that "Do I try something else or do I wait for something that might not come back online?" debate.

Anyway...I figured I'd move along and ended up at IASW. I find I look at the same stuff every time I go on this ride and end up bored but its still one I have to do, just because you always go on IASW at least once! My routine is trying to identify as many countries as I can, and drooling over the costumes from India and Thailand.

After that I trekked over to the Haunted Mansion. My FP was for later but I figured waiting and getting to see the interactive queue (I bypassed it last trip) was worth the wait. The posted wait was 25 minutes but I've said it once and I'll say it again. Going solo has its advantages. The CMs tell you straight out, fill in all available space and I always manage to find lots of available space...by passing groups and families that aren't paying attention. I walked past probably 40 groups of people in that line. You may not agree with it but if there is room to move past you while you're checking your phone or digging through your bag or tying junior's shoe...I'm going to pass you. I think it messes with people's mind that they know they saw me behind them at one point then the next time they see me I'm 10 parties ahead of them. Just move up guys...that's all you have to do to block me. Please understand I don't barge through anyone either. I just find gaps and move through them. It had started raining at that point with very loud thunder, which made for extra ambiance walking through the queue.

Next I decided to hit up the Hall of Presidents, another one I don't really love but go because it's tradition. I think it's so well done that people should see it at least once. I hit the timing right because right when I walked into the building the doors were opening to let people into the theater.

Post Americana, my Haunted Mansion FP was active so I figured meh, why not? It's one of my favorite rides so I rode again with my FP. I know a lot of people don't understand the storyline of the ride or don't believe it, but ever since I read the "throwing yourself off the roof" theory it makes so much sense.

With my fill of ghosts for the day, I meandered back to the Mine Train. It was still sprinkling a bit but barely, so I figured it was worth a shot. The line was open and I was nervous because there was a bit of a back up at the FP entrance. I thought "Oh boy...it's going to be packed because of that open FP" but once I got past the turnstile it was actually about a 5 minute wait. I rode with the family that was ahead of me in line which started a precedent of people I talked to in line adopting me for a few minutes and including me in their group. The ride is so well done, really beautiful to look at. I can't say its worth more than a 30-45 minute wait but if you have the opportunity to ride it you should. Just trust me.

Bup bup bup...what came next? Oh yeah I realized I was blowing through things really quickly. Boggling but it always seems to happen to me. I budget all this time and then end up with hours to kill. I was just kind of meandering working my way back to Fantasyland figuring I'd hit up Philharmagic. On the way I noticed that Lady Tremaine and the Stepsisters were out meeting so I jumped in line, but they left after like 3 more groups I did manage to grab a picture of them.

Philharmagic ended up being closed so noticing my phone was getting a little low on battery I figured I'd sit down and journal for a bit and get some water. I picked Pinocchio's Village Haus so I could chill out by the window to Small World. Unfortunately something was apparently up with that ride too. There were several people in official looking clothes hanging around while they were sending boats through the ride empty. I sat and watched for about half an hour and it was still closed when I left the restaurant. I never did manage to figure out what was going on. That was 2 attractions in Fantasyland down, then I found out Pirates had been down until lunch time that day. The weather maybe?



Knowing that Pirates had been having issues I figured I'd head over and see if it were open, plus my FP was active. I got in the FP line and filled in all available space again. One lady noticed me doing it this time. I happened to turn back and she gave me a funny look, then nudged her husband. She nodded towards me and I could see she was saying "What's that girl think she's doing?" but she didn't try to call me out on it. As for the ride...I can't explain it but ever since they changed the ride to include Jack Sparrow, the ride seems shorter to me. I float along, ride ride...pirates and wenches...and then BOOM get off the ride kids! Seriously I couldn't tell you why it seems that way to me, does anyone else think this?

After my short trip to the Caribbean I continued on my boat theme and headed to Jungle Cruise. I am an absolute nerd for this ride. My last trip I didn't realize I was mouthing around with the script and had people thinking that I must work there. The puns are so bad I just can't resist laughing, especially when you get a good skipper. This skipper.. *sigh*... she tried. She really tried, but there was just something lacking. She was rushing through the jokes and leaving weird gaps in the banter. It was like "wordswordswords.........................................wordswordswordswords.......................words". There was part of me that really wanted to take the microphone away from her and do it myself. I'm sure its harder than it looks but it was a little painful to listen to.

After that I was sort of at a loss of what to do. It was a MNSSHP night so I knew I didn't have a lot of time to get into stuff. I had accomplished pretty much everything I needed to do that day. My dining reservation for dinner wasn't until after 8 and it was only 6:15. I figured I'd kill time looking through the gift shops, getting an idea of stuff I wanted to keep in mind to get. The shops were totally packed, full of cranky damp people all pushing through other people because...well who knows why. What I did notice, and noticed through a lot of my trip, was people buying the big stuffed animals. Like the toddler sized ones. I've never seen that many people actually purchase them before. I can't imagine dedicating that much space in a suitcase to them or letting a kid carry it on the plane.

I gave up on shopping because I am a girl, I want to browse and not be elbowed in the kidneys by a soccer mom trying to get at the Elsa doll I'm looking at. I knew when it was time to call it a night and ended up leaving at 6:30. I did decide to walk past the Jack and Sally meet and greet to get an idea of what the line would be like when I attended the Halloween party. It was ridiculously long and the party hadn't even started yet.

I caught a bus to Beach Club and it took me a minute to figure out where I needed to be. I actually had to ask for directions. I tried to check into Beaches and Cream early but they told me to come back closer to my reservation time, so I sat sort of near the pool but under a roof because it was *surprise* still raining (a theme this trip if you couldn't tell by the name of the report).

After dinner I caught a bus to DTD, and for whatever reason it was such a long ride! We hit every red light, every little back up in traffic. It was like we were just puttering along. Thankfully there was an OKW bus pulling up right as I got off the Beach Club one and that ride was nice and quick.

I was exhausted by the time I got back to the resort, but I still had stuff to do. I went to Bell Services to get my grocery order, and had David from Bell Services give me a ride to my room. He was so nice, chatting the entire time and even coming into the room to show me where stuff was and get the lights turned on since it was pitch black in there. I was actually a little sad we couldn't continue our conversation. Then it hit me. I was in the room 2910. Directly next to the one I had so many issues with last time. I crossed my fingers all would be well, unpacked and crashed in my super comfy bed.

 

[GravityGirl]

I'm following. I've got my umbrella. Let's do this.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Ready for another one GravityGirl?

Saturday the 27th, Epcot day 1.

Some stupid part of my brain decided it'd be a solid idea to set my alarm for 7:40am. I have no idea why. It was way too early and I ended up sitting around the room for a bit before I left. However what I should have remembered that while Peninsular Rd is the first pickup at OKW for buses, you still have to go through the rest of the resort which means being on the bus for like 15 minutes before you actual leave to get to the park. So maybe there was a little part of my mind that was like "Hey..travel time dummy?" Who knows.

I ended up at Epcot at about 945am. I headed directly to The Land. This is the pavilion I always send the most time in. Since there was a few minutes before I could use my FP to Soarin, I got signed up for the Behind the Seeds tour. I poked around the little shopping area and ended up getting 2 of the Mickey's Greenhouses (One for me and one for a friend that was kicking himself for not getting one while he was there in the summer). For any one aside from GravityGirl that might be reading this, just an FYI on these guys. They're a great, relatively inexpensive souvenir but be advised you cannot pack them in your checked luggage if you are flying home. The temperature in the cargo hold will likely kill them, at least according to the CM who sold them to me. She had a trustworthy face and frankly I wasn't going to risk it.

I still had a bit til my FP was active so I hopped on Living with the Land. I love this ride, I fully admit my nerdliness with it. Couldn't even tell you exactly why I like it so much, aside from maybe many trips to the local Botanical Gardens as a kid so maybe its one of those weird kid association...memory...thingies. Either way, I love it and someday will remember to ride it at night (I just want to see it at night ok? This and Jungle Cruise).

Helooo Miss Chicken

After my farmucation, I hopped in the Soarin line. Not literally, I mean I did find myself skipping through the parks at other points but this was not one of them. Not that there was much of a wait, but I spent that time talking to the family in front of me, who had never been on Soarin before . Not even their first trip, they had just never gotten in the line because it was always long. It was a decent ride, not too much dust which was a nice surprise.

By the time I got off Soarin, Living with the Land has a 20 minute posted wait when maybe 30 minutes before it was literally walk on. I think its all the people that get off Soarin and just go "Oh there's another line".

There was still a little while before my tour so I meandered upstairs and watched the Lion King enviromental thing. I can't remember the actual name of it, but luckily the timing was perfect because they were just loading the theater when I walked in. It was a good waste of time, and I watched a kid line up cheerios on the arm rest then eat them.

I walked back down to wait for my tour and we were pretty quickly called in. Jacob, our tour guide was young and adorable, knowledgeable but not the most engaging. Oh, and by we, I mean the 2 old ladies that also took the tour. I got the impression it was maybe a mom and grandma that were dumped by the rest of the family to do old lady things? I don't know what that says about me being on the same tour. Its the 3 or 4th tour I've taken with Behind the Seeds and really, every time its a wildly different group of people. Also because of the tour guide being different, there's always a new set of information being presented with the cycling of their planting seasons and that CMs specialty. The other women weren't really asking questions so I tried to, at least making things a little interesting for little Jacob. After that we just kept walking forward while the ladies looked at stuff and talked to each other about their own gardens. Jacob and I bonded over our mutual boredom of them and I said "Just keep moving, they'll follow along soon enough. Go boy, go!" Another weird thing to note here was he told us we could have taken pictures on the tour. Since when? I thought pictures on tours were a big no no?

I was starving by the time I got out of the greenhouse and decided to hit Sunshine Seasons for lunch. GravityGirl already knows how this was, anyone else, you'll have to go to the dining review for that info.

By now it was early afternoon (I told you, I spend a lot of time in the Land), I decided to go to Imagination. I don't really know why. I weep for old Figment but as I will explain in a future post, I at least sort of understand why it's gone. I got in line to basically walk on but watched this old guy in a scooter screaming at the CMs because he didn't want to transfer but he didn't need the handicap accessible cart but he didn't want to transfer and now everyone loading was cutting him in line but the CM at the front told him there was no wait and why are they riding when he was there first?!?!?! Yeah it was weird.. I can't figure out if it was the first ride he was trying to get on or what, but oh man did he have a harsh reality check in store at the rest of the rides. I'm glad I didn't run into him again.

I was really hoping to buy something awesome and Figmenty but alas...there is a major lack of Figment merchandise. He's a classic character! He has a cult following, like really Disney? You couldn't throw me a bone here? I left empty handed.

I bopped around to Innoventions because darnit I was going to try Sum of All Thrills. I have managed to either miss this, or completely forget about it til too late since it's been there. The line was a bit painful, everyone and I mean everyone around me was complaining about the wait. I didn't mind because I used my eyes and saw that only 3 arms were running, with 2 seats each so yeah, only 6 people were riding at a time. I'd done Cyberspace Mountain at Disneyquest, and it's not too different but I do prefer Cyberspace mountain for the ride vehicle. I didn't like my legs hanging at Sum of all Thrills.

To quench my thirst I went into Club Cool. I have to say I miss the old flavors. I tried, I really tried (literally, I tried anything that sounded appealing) but most were just way too sweet. The Fanta Pineapple was tolerable, the Melon was delicious. I would have bought a bottle of that if I could. Vegitabeta was ok, Bibo was gross, Sparberry was sickeningly sweet, Inca Cola...ugh. I don't like bubblegum flavor anything and this was like the distilled essence of sticky sweet childhood. Guarana was also tolerable but really. Just too sweet over all. I miss the honey and lemon on from Israel.

After that I walked over to Universe of Energy. I have such a love hate relationship with this ride. I wish they would update it, even in the same theme, even with Ellen and Bill Nye and Stupid Judy again but just...hit the refresh button. There was hardly anyone there. I had the entire back half of the vehicle to myself which meant naptime.

I had a FP for Mission Space but it wasn't until later in the day, but walking past it (yikes 2 buts in a sentence) there was only a 15 minute wait and I figured I might as well hit it now rather than walk back. I'd been hemming and hawing about if I should do the intense version, I'd only ridden it once before and couldn't really remember how bad it was. I've developed a fainting issue and I was probably not very smart deciding to do the intense one. So in I go, into the preshow...and we don't move. Granted it's been awhile but dear lord I don't remember the preshow being that long or being held in the room that long! Unless something was up that we didn't know about. It was a painful wait. When we made it to the loading area I ended up with a younger couple, early 20s or so. I couldn't resist a bit of sassiness so when we were all assigned our roles, I made sure the girl knew she better not mess up putting us into hypersleep. "I won't crash the shuttle if you make sure I'm asleep til we get there K?" They thought I was amusing. So off we went to Mars, it was a blast. Get it, ha! A BLAST! Ok not really a blast, it's a good ride but not a must do for me especially now that I've done it again. It was uncomfortable but not horribly so, I'd still like to try the Green side someday, just o have a comparison.

I was managing to time things really well (I wasn't even trying, it was just working...) so I wasn't rushed to get to anything. Meandering and walking at a leisurely pace was still leaving me a lot of time. I poked my way over to Seas (To me it's still the Living Seas) and rode Nemo while lamenting the loss of the old movie. Yeah I'm a weirdo and liked the old formation of the oceans movie.

After I got off the ride I was walking around and actually managed to catch the dolphin show. I've never seen it before, I've always walked up right at the very tail (*snicker*) end or right after it finished. It was actually very cute, not too long, and the trainer was quite informative and entertaining. He stuck around for awhile for anyone that wanted to ask questions. I stayed to hear what he had to say, but he was waylaid by a family with a special snowflake daughter that dreams of being a trainer. And I got to watch the trainer crush her dreams a bit. This sounds mean, I know. Let me splain... I don't have an issue with the kids like this so much as I do the parents. The ones that put their kid on a pedestal and get offended when other people, especially strangers, don't treat the kid like the second coming. What ended up happening her is the parents speaking for the 16 year old, the trainer trying to ask her questions sincerely and the parents jumping in to answer for her. He told her in a nice but very honest way that the first thing she needs to do is decide where she wants to live, because there's really only specific cities that have dolphin programs. That caught them by surprise. He told them very honestly that unless you're willing to relocate for a job, it's not the career for you. Also that they'd be looking for biology and psych education (another shocker to them) and to be prepared to compete against what would likely be 70 other people, all applying for one job. He tried to ask if she was a good swimmer, only to have mom go "Well of course, she competes...plus she sings too so her breath control is outstanding". On the off chance Mommy or Daddy finds this... good for you to want a lot for your kid. But let her talk, let her prove herself and don't stuff her down a trainer's throat in hopes that he'll put in a good word for 5 years down the road. *face palm*.

After watching this all transpire I had a lovely conversation with the same trainer, and another with a CM about turtles. To make up for my rant, here's some pretty fishys.

ACK WHAT IS THIS THING!!!!

I still had a lot of time to kill before my dinner reservation, so I opted to hit Spaceship Earth. I miss the old one, Dame Judy is great and I do thank the Phoenicians but I don't like the video part at the end. I think it's boring compared to the old version. Bring back the seal! (Anyone who has not ridden SE, I'm sorry for writing what is probably the most confusing paragraph ever).

She totally parties with the Phoenicians.


I was on and off the ride quickly, and wasted some time with all those little game things after the ride. They're amusing enough but not when there's a hoard of children careening around pushing their way through people and cutting the little lines people were trying to wait in.

Unfortunately as I headed up to the World Showcase, I went from hoards of children to swarms of drunks. Hearing about the weekend crowds is nothing like seeing them in person. I figured I could get a drink and just people watch but instead I wanted nothing to do with people. Since I was passing the Greek stand anyway and wanted the griddled cheese I got it so I didn't drink on an empty tummy. The line was longish and I figured it was just because it was near 6-630pm and people were hungry. Every other line I passed was longed to completely packed, and the boarishness and foul language I heard trying to get back to England was stunning. I am the first to admit I have a horrible mouth but I know when to let loose...these people didn't. F this, Holy F, Dude this is the Sh**, ....cripes. When I got back to the Rose and Crown it was packed. I mean literally completely full of people with only a thin strip of floor to get in and out of the building. It took around 10 minutes to even get close to the bar, and probably another 10 to get my drink.

After pushing my way out and now knowing what a baby must feel like while being born... I swam my way through the sea of humanity and found a blissfully quiet uncrowded spot behind a stand in Canada. I parked myself on the ground and called home.

I only drank about half my drink and didn't know what to do with myself, to clearly the answer was O Canada! Believe it or not this was a first for me. It was actually cute, I enjoyed Martin Short but it could do with a facelift. Not Martin...well maybe Martin but I do mean the film. I really hope that when all the current projects are finished they put some love into Epcot. There's so much potential there and it's just limping along.

After O Canada (my close neighbor to the north), I tried to check in for my dinner reservation at Le Cellier. I was able to but they were running very far behind so I ended up seated pretty late. To read about my dinner...well you should know where to go at this point.

I was so sleepy after dinner I made my way up to the front of the park to head home, and luckily the crowds has spread out a bit. Pretty soon I was curled up in my o so comfy bed at OKW and ready for the next day..or was I? Stay tuned.