jodyb
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 15, 1999
Liav and Jody's Excellent DLP Adventure 2005 Part 2
Cast:
Liav (13)
Jody (Old enough to be her Mom...)
Part 2 – Monday, Jan. 10, 2005
Woke up feeling very rested and energized – ready to hit the parks full force! Better glance at my watch…. WHAT? 3:10? Oh. Okay….sigh, back to sleep. 6:30 up again – this time it's final – I cannot sleep another moment. I sneaked into the bathroom and put some clothes on, letting Liav keep on sleeping for the time being, and at about 6:45 I ventured out to the Castle Club lobby. I was immediately struck by the fact that Christmas was still there!! All the decorations were intact, the carols were still being piped in, and glancing over the balcony to the 2nd floor Main Street Lounge, I saw that there too, the Christmas tree and everything else were still there! I'd been sure the removal fairies would have been at work all night making Christmas disappear… but apparently they had run into some problems. Well, I wasn't complaining – the decorations were lovely!
There was a CM sitting at a desk in the Castle Club reception area and I inquired about the possibility of obtaining a cup of coffee… breakfast would not open until 7:30 and at this point it was only 7. She went right into the kitchen of the CC lounge and came out with a steaming cappuccino for me which I enjoyed at a table overlooking the MS lounge. I had my notebook with me and used that quiet time to write my notes about the day before for this trip report. Liav got up around 7:30, and we had breakfast – again at a window table in Castle Club overlooking the train station and Main Street. We noticed that the white arches of the Lights of Winter AND the Christmas tree were all still standing! When the lights of MS came on, the arches did not partially light as they had the day before however, and there were no lights on the tree. At 8:30 the sun was almost fully up and there was a beautiful pink sky behind the castle – so beautiful!
On weekdays in the winter off season the parks open at 10 AM. We went down at around 9:30 and got into the park using our AP again. When we got to the central square we saw small crowds waiting at the ropes for each of the lands. We joined the group waiting to enter Frontierland, and when the rope dropped we walked – fast – caught up in the excitement of the group – to Big Thunder Mountain. Disappointment – closed. So we walked over to Haunted mansion and rode that, staying on the ride twice (today was the start of Magic Unlimited). Next we boarded the river boat. The sun was shining and although it was quite cold there was no wind, so it was a beautiful day to cruise along taking photos. Liav got lots of photos of BTM from the river boat and she told me (don't know why I'd never figured this out before!) that the dark part of BTM at the beginning and end of the ride is when you are UNDER the river! Wow, this should have been obvious to me, since at no point to you go OVER the river, so how did I imagine we got over to the mountain?? But I'd just never thought about that before! BTM is my all-time favorite ride – both here and at WDW, but at DLP it is better, in my opinion.
When we got off the river boat BTM was open, so we rode it once, and then a second time using our VIP fastpass since the crowds had gathered by 11 AM.
On to Adventureland – time to try Indiana Jones (forward!). We loved it!! What a difference! We both love roller coasters, but had hated IJ last year when it was backwards. Now, however, it's a really fun, although short, ride. There was almost nobody in line, and we were allowed to stay on again, even though I don't think this was one of the Magic Unlimited rides.
Next we went to Pirates of the Caribbean, which was great except for the second drop which, for some reason SOAKED me! I hadn't expected that- I never thought of PoC as a wet ride… but when I got off I looked as if I'd waded into the river up to my waist! And in the cold, it was not too comfortable. We looked for a heated restaurant and ended up at Fuente Del Oro – the Mexican place across from BTM. I had delicious chili and Liav loved the chicken fajitas. (You'll notice she orders this everywhere!)
After lunch we wandered around Adventureland a bit more, taking photos of the Skull Rock from inside and out… At about 3:00 we took the train from Frontier land station around to Main Street. Up the CC lift and back to the room for a short rest. At 4:00 we went to the CC lounge for tea – lovely cakes and chocolate chip cookies like yesterday… and we were lucky enough to get our favorite table by the window! Liav got photos of the train pulling into Main Street Station.
After another rest in room we were back in the park at around 6 PM. It was dark now, and we wanted to do the roller coasters in the dark. We did Indiana Jones and BTM, three times each – all were walk-ons. Love these rides in the dark! Especially BTM with the views of the castle…
For supper we went back to the same Fuente Del Oro (I must comment that Liav and I are very boring when it comes to food – we pretty much ate the same stuff over and over the entire week, and we're not into full service restaurants, so many of you will find my reports pretty boring in that respect – sorry!) I had chili again, and Liav had – guess what? Chicken Fajitas! I remembered to ask for my 10% off using my AP this time – had forgotten at lunch…
After supper we went to our favorite spot for Fantillusion. Backs to the Castle, on Central Square, about 10 meters to the right. This is where two of the stops take place. We LOVED the parade.
Walking back to the hotel after the parade, we walked under the white arches on Main Street, but they were not lit. It was a bit annoying to tell the truth. I felt that they should have taken them down, or if they were still up, at least turn them on… as it was they sort of blocked the view of the MS lights on the buildings, and added nothing. (Sorry for complaining) Also, the Christmas tree was still up, but they did not light it after dark. The square itself – where the stage with the books and feather, and the gorgeous Christmas balls had been, was surrounded by a green construction wall for several days, while they restored the square to its usual state. It just felt wrong – and I was surprised that Disney was not on top of things. Usually Christmas disappears overnight when the season officially ends (at least this is true in WDW), but this time it dragged on (stay tuned.)
Back at the hotel I left Liav watching Disney movies on TV and went down to the pool area hoping to soak in the Jacuzzi. When I got there, however I changed my mind – it looked anything but restful – the pool, which is quite small, was over crowded with boisterous children and the Jacuzzi seemed to contain all their parents. It looked like everyone was having a lovely time, but I decided not to join them since I was in the mood for a bit more serenity. So back to the room for another lovely bubble bath!
Tomorrow, we finally venture into the studios…
Stay tuned.
Cast:
Liav (13)
Jody (Old enough to be her Mom...)
Part 2 – Monday, Jan. 10, 2005
Woke up feeling very rested and energized – ready to hit the parks full force! Better glance at my watch…. WHAT? 3:10? Oh. Okay….sigh, back to sleep. 6:30 up again – this time it's final – I cannot sleep another moment. I sneaked into the bathroom and put some clothes on, letting Liav keep on sleeping for the time being, and at about 6:45 I ventured out to the Castle Club lobby. I was immediately struck by the fact that Christmas was still there!! All the decorations were intact, the carols were still being piped in, and glancing over the balcony to the 2nd floor Main Street Lounge, I saw that there too, the Christmas tree and everything else were still there! I'd been sure the removal fairies would have been at work all night making Christmas disappear… but apparently they had run into some problems. Well, I wasn't complaining – the decorations were lovely!
There was a CM sitting at a desk in the Castle Club reception area and I inquired about the possibility of obtaining a cup of coffee… breakfast would not open until 7:30 and at this point it was only 7. She went right into the kitchen of the CC lounge and came out with a steaming cappuccino for me which I enjoyed at a table overlooking the MS lounge. I had my notebook with me and used that quiet time to write my notes about the day before for this trip report. Liav got up around 7:30, and we had breakfast – again at a window table in Castle Club overlooking the train station and Main Street. We noticed that the white arches of the Lights of Winter AND the Christmas tree were all still standing! When the lights of MS came on, the arches did not partially light as they had the day before however, and there were no lights on the tree. At 8:30 the sun was almost fully up and there was a beautiful pink sky behind the castle – so beautiful!
On weekdays in the winter off season the parks open at 10 AM. We went down at around 9:30 and got into the park using our AP again. When we got to the central square we saw small crowds waiting at the ropes for each of the lands. We joined the group waiting to enter Frontierland, and when the rope dropped we walked – fast – caught up in the excitement of the group – to Big Thunder Mountain. Disappointment – closed. So we walked over to Haunted mansion and rode that, staying on the ride twice (today was the start of Magic Unlimited). Next we boarded the river boat. The sun was shining and although it was quite cold there was no wind, so it was a beautiful day to cruise along taking photos. Liav got lots of photos of BTM from the river boat and she told me (don't know why I'd never figured this out before!) that the dark part of BTM at the beginning and end of the ride is when you are UNDER the river! Wow, this should have been obvious to me, since at no point to you go OVER the river, so how did I imagine we got over to the mountain?? But I'd just never thought about that before! BTM is my all-time favorite ride – both here and at WDW, but at DLP it is better, in my opinion.
When we got off the river boat BTM was open, so we rode it once, and then a second time using our VIP fastpass since the crowds had gathered by 11 AM.
On to Adventureland – time to try Indiana Jones (forward!). We loved it!! What a difference! We both love roller coasters, but had hated IJ last year when it was backwards. Now, however, it's a really fun, although short, ride. There was almost nobody in line, and we were allowed to stay on again, even though I don't think this was one of the Magic Unlimited rides.
Next we went to Pirates of the Caribbean, which was great except for the second drop which, for some reason SOAKED me! I hadn't expected that- I never thought of PoC as a wet ride… but when I got off I looked as if I'd waded into the river up to my waist! And in the cold, it was not too comfortable. We looked for a heated restaurant and ended up at Fuente Del Oro – the Mexican place across from BTM. I had delicious chili and Liav loved the chicken fajitas. (You'll notice she orders this everywhere!)
After lunch we wandered around Adventureland a bit more, taking photos of the Skull Rock from inside and out… At about 3:00 we took the train from Frontier land station around to Main Street. Up the CC lift and back to the room for a short rest. At 4:00 we went to the CC lounge for tea – lovely cakes and chocolate chip cookies like yesterday… and we were lucky enough to get our favorite table by the window! Liav got photos of the train pulling into Main Street Station.
After another rest in room we were back in the park at around 6 PM. It was dark now, and we wanted to do the roller coasters in the dark. We did Indiana Jones and BTM, three times each – all were walk-ons. Love these rides in the dark! Especially BTM with the views of the castle…
For supper we went back to the same Fuente Del Oro (I must comment that Liav and I are very boring when it comes to food – we pretty much ate the same stuff over and over the entire week, and we're not into full service restaurants, so many of you will find my reports pretty boring in that respect – sorry!) I had chili again, and Liav had – guess what? Chicken Fajitas! I remembered to ask for my 10% off using my AP this time – had forgotten at lunch…
After supper we went to our favorite spot for Fantillusion. Backs to the Castle, on Central Square, about 10 meters to the right. This is where two of the stops take place. We LOVED the parade.
Walking back to the hotel after the parade, we walked under the white arches on Main Street, but they were not lit. It was a bit annoying to tell the truth. I felt that they should have taken them down, or if they were still up, at least turn them on… as it was they sort of blocked the view of the MS lights on the buildings, and added nothing. (Sorry for complaining) Also, the Christmas tree was still up, but they did not light it after dark. The square itself – where the stage with the books and feather, and the gorgeous Christmas balls had been, was surrounded by a green construction wall for several days, while they restored the square to its usual state. It just felt wrong – and I was surprised that Disney was not on top of things. Usually Christmas disappears overnight when the season officially ends (at least this is true in WDW), but this time it dragged on (stay tuned.)
Back at the hotel I left Liav watching Disney movies on TV and went down to the pool area hoping to soak in the Jacuzzi. When I got there, however I changed my mind – it looked anything but restful – the pool, which is quite small, was over crowded with boisterous children and the Jacuzzi seemed to contain all their parents. It looked like everyone was having a lovely time, but I decided not to join them since I was in the mood for a bit more serenity. So back to the room for another lovely bubble bath!
Tomorrow, we finally venture into the studios…
Stay tuned.
and pixiedust coming your way.
