Iowans in Florida - or, "35 degrees is NOT a wind chill!"

Deb in IA

Knows that KIDS are better
Joined
Aug 18, 1999
We are long time DIS'er, have been going to WDW since 1999, and have been DVC members since 2001.

We have been doing Disney cruises for the last 3 - 4 years, so it has been several years since we were at "the World".

I had some banked DVC points that were expiring at the end of this month. Also, both our "kids" are in college now here at the University of Iowa, and their winter break is a month long - they don't go back until after MLK day, so back in the summer, I booked us a week at OKW for January 12 -19.

So, we are:
DH - has thoroughly converted to being a big Disney fan. Wanted to make sure we met up with his 2 cousins who live near Orlando - one in Kissimee, the other in Sorrento.
Me - DIS'er and trip planner
DD 22 - graduating college senior this year
DS 18 - college freshman this year, both at Iowa

We do not do the Disney Dining plan, but instead use our DVC membership for discounts at as many restaurants and other things as possible.

Also, I purchased 5-day Hoppers without expiration at our local AAA office in advance (AAA gave me a $21 discount per Hopper), and added them to the MDE account before we left.

Sunday, January 12
Super early flight from Cedar Rapids, Iowa - 5:40 AM! Woke at 3, left the house at 4. I deliberately booked the early flight, because they were cheaper and more importantly, if they get canceled (always a possibility in this weather), there would be more chances of getting a later flight.
No problems checking in, cleared security, got on board, and waited about 20 minutes for de-icing. Luckily, we had 1 hour 45 min layover in Chicago O'Hare, so no problems making the connection. We flew on United.

Arrived at Orlando International around 12:20 pm. Magical Express worked smoothly, and OKW was the first stop on our bus. Checked in by 1 pm, and were happy to find out that our room was ready!:yay: We were in 4021, near the Turtle Pond bus stop. We booked a 1 bedroom villa, and got our requests of upper floor, near transportation, and 2 entrances to the bathroom. Very spacious, and liked having the 2 pull-outs in the living room. I purchased some groceries at the OKW gift store, and we all crashed and took a nap! Luggage was delivered by around 3 pm.

Didn't realize until we checked in that this was the day of the WDW Marathon. DH used to run this regularly, but has had hip problems and had a total hip replacement last year. His orthopedic surgeon told him no more running at all. Seeing all those runners coming back when we were checking in with their happy, post-race glow, wrapped in those silver wraps with their medals around their necks gave DH a twinge of jealousy and regret, but also gave him the idea of trying to walk the entire 4-race program next year.

Woke up and met DH's cousin and his wife for dinner at Olivia's Café there at OKW at around 7:30 pm. I was surprised at how small Olivia's is, for such a large resort, but food there was good and service was great. DH forgot to bring his DVC card, so for the rest of the trip, I had to use mine for the DVC discounts. Had a great time visiting with DH's cousin, who he had not seen for about 8 years. Cousin used to work for Disney (cruise line), and gave us some inside info and tips. Had a great time, then said good-bye to them and off to bed.
 
Monday, January 13
Weather started out in the upper 60's in the morning, but was heading up to 79 degrees, so no jackets for us hardy Iowans! The week before our trip, we had temps to -17 and wind chills to -35!

Wanted to be at bus stop by 9, but the kids don't like to get up early, so we finally made it out there by around 9:45. My plan, which didn't work out, was to actually not be super compulsive with the planning. Instead, I was going to just show up at the bus stop and take whatever was the first bus to come along. BUT, the MDE/FP+ system messed that up, because I had booked so many FP+ in advance on line, so we had to go tot he park where the FP+ were. Bummer.

Anyway, I knew that MK was going to FP+ the next day, on Jan 14, so I wanted to do MK with the legacy FP on its last day. We got in by 10:30, and crowds were not bad. We pulled a FP for Space Mountain, did Buzz Lightyear, got in stand-by for Space Mountain, then did the TTA Peoplemover, then used our FP for Space Mountain. We then did Carousel of Progress, and finished at Tomorrowland with the Monsters INC Laugh Floor (DD did not remember this from before).

Headed over to Adventureland, where DD wanted Dole Whips and turkey legs. Scored a table in the tucked way area behind the Aloha Isle and ate there. I pulled FP for Jungle Cruise before I went to Frontierland for the turkey legs. After eating, we did Jungle Cruise, Pirate of the Caribbean, Big Thunder and Haunted Mansion (Splash Mountain is currently down for refurbishment).

Left MK and took a direct bus to HS. Rode the Great Movie ride, and got the gangster scenario. I wanted to do the Voyage of the Little Mermaid afterward, but family said no. Instead, we watched Mulch, Sweat and Shears at the Sorcerer's Hat. Had reservations at Brown Derby at 6:40, and we decided to check in a bit early, at around 6:15.

Here's where I saw my first "O, foolish mortal" episode: While we were waiting for our table in Brown Derby, we saw a guy come up to the podium and say to the hostess, "I need a reservation tonight at 7 pm". It was 6:15 at the time. She tells his "We are completely full tonight. If you want to wait, we may have something in 1 1/2 hours." He asks if they have anything later, and she tells him that they close at 8. He is really pushy, and says that he wants to take a look at the dining room, so he barges in, looks around, and leaves. :rolleyes:

We get seated by 6:30. Brown Derby is one of my favorites; I love the atmosphere of old Hollywood style and glamor. I'm not real good on remembering what people ordered, but I do recall that DD wanted to try the cocoanut-crusted tofu/noodle bowl entrée, which she did not like and ended up trading with me. I ordered the Cobb salad as a entrée. The combination of the sweet cocoanut with the tofu and the slightly spicy noodles was strange. I got the grapefruit cake for dessert, which was delicious, except for the outer frosting which was dry and had no flavor. DH and DS got the crème bruiee. I was hoping to get to the 8:30 Fantasmic, because it was the only time this week they were doing a late show, but the waiter was having problems running our bill because the computers went down. It took him almost 15 minutes, and finally, because he knew we were trying to get to the show, he just said that he needed a total and he would run it through when the system came back up.

We managed to get to Fantasmic with about 10 minutes to spare. Our seats were pretty good; over to the left, two sections from the end. Great show, as always.

Headed out, back to the resort, and to bed.
 
Tuesday, January 14
This was the day we had a 50% chance of rain, so I packed our ponchos. As it turned out, we only had a few sprinkles/light mist, and we never used the ponchos at all.

This was AK day, because of the pre-booked FP+ for Safari, Expedition Everest, and Dinosaur. I didn't book Kali River Rapids, because we didn't want to be soaked in cool weather.

Got out to the bus stop at around 9:30. After arriving in the park, we went to use our FP+ for Kilamanjaro Safari. I all agreed that taking out the hokey story line about poachers, Big Red and Little Red was a BIG improvement. Next we did the stand by line for Expedition Everest, then went over to Dinoland and did Primeval Whirl. I wanted to see a show, so we saw the Finding Nemo, since the Legend of the Lion King is gone now. Then we used our FP+ for Expedition Everest again, and then went to Restaurantosaurus for lunch. Afterward, we went to It's Tough to be a Bug, then rode Dinosaur first as stand-by and then with FP+.

As it was early, we went back to OKW for a rest period, then went to Whispering Canyon Café for dinner at 7:30. We didn't do the family skillets, since we were still a bit full, and instead ordered the lighter side meals. The atmosphere was a bit more subdued, I think because it was later at night, but it was fine for us. Then back to OKW and to bed.
 

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