Lions and Tigers and CGI Bears, Oh My! June '16 - COMPLETED 6/4, page 22

[ALEXandFAB]

Ill-advised. He throws it horribly, the wristlet nearly hits Kristin in the face, and she's not too happy. The latter may or may not be an understatement.

Oh, as a fellow mom to a boy that doesn't always think before he acts, I'm getting a little just thinking about this.

Thumbs down to Disney on that last one, for trying to make the mermaids look all playful and cheery while glossing over the fact that they TRIED TO KILL WENDY. As much as you want to rewrite history, Disney, some of us will never forget.

"We were only trying to drown her." *wink and smile*

How on Earth do they do that?

Shhh. Don't ask silly questions.

We heard rumors that Disney would be removing the Tic Toc stuff from this ride in response to the alligator attack, but I don't believe it. Besides, I think TT is a crocodile, not an alligator. #KnowYourSpecies. At any rate, he's still here. And I think he'll remain here. We'll see.

#SaveTicToc

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Seems like a pretty productive morning - other than Dylan's "think fast" moment

Bummer lunch wasn't better

 

[Sarahh1027]

First off I'd like to say I am a huuuuugeeeee fan of Nilla Trip Reports!!!!!

Seriously I've read them (all leading up to my past trip!) and I'm psyched that I get to actually follow-along while you write this one!

We're older now, and we've also been on Splash Mountain roughly 27,139 times, so it's all good even if we don't get on it another 542 times on this trip. We'll settle for riding it 218 times instead. #SlowingDown

Oh yes slowing down for sureee! Splash is my favorite ride so I understand!

"think fast"

uh ohh that's never good haha

Thumbs down to Disney on that last one, for trying to make the mermaids look all playful and cheery while glossing over the fact that they TRIED TO KILL WENDY. As much as you want to rewrite history, Disney, some of us will never forget.

HONESTLY! I agree! I actually read Peter Pan this past winter (well all of it except the last couple of chapters....I do that often, it's a problem)..and the mermaids were horrible!

He does seem to agree that having Mickey Mouse come in and give mini-London the Godzilla treatment would be fantastic, so there is that.

Mickey's the new ZillaMan!

We heard rumors that Disney would be removing the Tic Toc stuff from this ride in response to the alligator attack, but I don't believe it. Besides, I think TT is a crocodile, not an alligator. #KnowYourSpecies. At any rate, he's still here. And I think he'll remain here. We'll see.

I agree here, 1. its a croc and 2. it's part of a timeless Disney story and ride!

After visiting Neverland, we skipped (not literally, but that would have been fun) over to the Hundred Acre Wood to ride another Attraction We Like But Won't FP or Wait Over 20 Minutes For (tm), the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. I do love this ride, but it's one I wouldn't be too upset if I missed. That said, there's no way I can walk past these watermelon bongos and NOT play them.

Skipping is definitely the best way to travel inbetween Disney attractions! The watermelon bongos are the best!

No further photos of that ride, for whatever reason. I blame laziness. As I said before, this is a great ride, but it doesn't even crack the top ten of my favorite attractions. That just goes to show how awesome Disney is!

Disney IS pretty darn awesome!

We put on our opera glasses and enjoy the show. Thanks to this one, I refer to ALL 3-D glasses in WDW (Star Tours, Toy Story Mania, etc.) as such.

I started calling them opera glasses after I read that you guys do hahaha it just makes sense!

A quick photo of the Carousel, which is the only interaction we'll have with that ride this trip...

I've NEVER been on the Carousel! That's one of my goals for my next Disney trip.

And Dad likes to try to avoid puking:

Your face in this picture is priceless. So serious focusing on not hurling lol

Actually, that was the Beast's Castle. It looks like it could be from Rudolph or something, though, doesn't it?

After taking that, it appears we put the phone down for a few hours and got NO PICTURES. None. It's inexplicable, but true.

Agreed about how Beast's Castle could've come straight out of Rudy, and I like putting the phone/camera down to enjoy the parks but then when I get home and I'm looking through pictures and wondering WHYY DID I DO THAT!

We got the phone out again when we got to the restaurant:

YAY!

I originally wanted to eat dinner here again (one of my favorites), but we couldn't get ADRs for it. The compromise was lunch. I loved pre-booking the meal, and it turned out to be a pretty good idea.

Dinner here is the best! I finally went to BOG this past May and loved dinner so much we found a lunch reservation for later in our trip! But it didn't even come close to dinner's awesomeness.

For whatever reason, we pick to eat in the Boring Room this time.

Hahaha we ate there for lunch aswell, we couldn't find a spot anywhere else! I liked how quiet it was and it fit the lunch vibe!

We never ate in here before. I do like it better than the Main Hall, unless you're near the snow windows.

I said this too, I'd only want the ballroom if I was right under the windows!

Perfect shot of Emily!

 

[nilla]

One of our 3 MK days, we definitely plan to hit PP first thing, then most likely Pooh, as that is my 4 yr old's fave ride. Glad to see it worked out well.

Everyone is at the Mine Train!

I haven't done BOG dinner, but we did lunch. I was playing with doing a PPO breakfast but we are paying oop so I don't think so. I think we'll stick with lunch. I'm sure my DH will probably go for the roast beef. I did the turkey last time but I'm planning the kids menu grilled cheese next time with some French onion soup. Oh and the strawberry cream cheese cupcake, bc it's the bomb!

I almost went with the French Onion Soup.

The cupcake sound great, but I can't cheat on the grey stuff

"We were only trying to drown her." *wink and smile*

Awful, isn't it?

Shhh. Don't ask silly questions.

MAGIC

Bummer lunch wasn't better

I liked it! I think the others just picked the wrong items. Which was "everything but the roast beef".

First off I'd like to say I am a huuuuugeeeee fan of Nilla Trip Reports!!!!!

Seriously I've read them (all leading up to my past trip!) and I'm psyched that I get to actually follow-along while you write this one!

Thank you!! Hope this one doesn't disappoint

Oh yes slowing down for sureee! Splash is my favorite ride so I understand!

I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said we've been on it over 30 times.

Skipping is definitely the best way to travel inbetween Disney attractions!

Another missed opportunity.

I started calling them opera glasses after I read that you guys do hahaha it just makes sense!

Starting a movement! #CallThemOperaGlasses

Dinner here is the best! I finally went to BOG this past May and loved dinner so much we found a lunch reservation for later in our trip! But it didn't even come close to dinner's awesomeness.

I love this place for dinner! We missed out this year. Maybe another year. Hopefully!

I have another update ready to go. And here it comes. Enjoy!

 

[nilla]

I said before that I'd need three updates to cover Day 5, but I'm able to do it in two. And this is the second.

When we last left off, we were coming out of Be Our Guest, ready to do a little more Magic Kingdoming before heading back to Coronado Springs. We have FastPasses for Splash Mountain that are good until 12:30, and it's right around 12:00 now. We make a pit stop at the Rapunzel restrooms, then decide to do a little Pascal hunting.

I read about this in princessesandpascal's Trip Report, having before not realized there were any hidden Pascals in the area. A tour guide tells me she heard there are five of them. Alright, let's find them!

(10 minutes later...)

We found them all! And got pictures to prove it.

What?

Where are they?

I can't show you! That would be cheating. I don't want to spoil the adventure for you. You're welcome.

However, I will show you some places there AREN'T Pascals:





Not on that tower, either:



As I said, we finally caught them all (...PO-KE-MON!), then took a few more photos before moseying up to Frontierland to make use of our Splash Mountain FPs:

 

[nilla]

That is, we WOULD have made use of our Splash Mountain FPs, if the ride wasn't down. Which it was. I guess we can try again after dinner.

Back to Liberty Square, stopping for a photo along the way:



Kristin suggests seeing the Hall of Presidents, but it's about 25 minutes until the doors open for the next show. We can wait in the Christmas shop, Kristin suggests. So, we go to the Christmas Shop, where we look at, well, Christmas stuff.

Ok. That got old fast. I don't think I can look at tree ornaments for another 19 minutes.

Kristin agrees, and we decide that now is as good a time as any to head back to the resort. While waiting for the bus, we try in vain to get another FP for Space Mountain, but My Disney Experience won't let us. Why not? We used our first three. What's the problem?

Space won't even show up as an option. We grab FPs for Big Thunder at 7:20 instead, then board the bus and go on our way. We reached CSR around 1:30, heading right back to the room.

ENGINEER, ACTIVATE HYPERSLEEP...NOW!

And that he did. And that we did. All four of us, sound asleep until 3:45. Like I said, we got up really early that morning. And like I also said, we're getting old.

The nap was wonderful, though, and the lot of us were refreshed, recharged, and ready to re-bus back to the Magic Kingdom. And then, Monorail to the Polynesian.



We have some time before our ADRs, so we do a little shopping, then head outside for photos:



We like this guy:



Because he's a lot like this guy:



We like this place, too:



We like this entire resort. Some day...

More shopping:





We look for the guy with the big drum, but he's apparently been replaced by a Disney Vacation Club desk. What?

We ask a CM where he went, but she doesn't know. But he's certainly not here. Bummer.

 

[nilla]

We must have been really early, because we had time to go outside, as well.



Oooh, I'd love to stay in one of those!



The beach is still there, but the signs are up:



More photos:





The mini-boats aren't running today. Not sure when they will. Shellie May doens't care. No...she ride anyway.





We find the time to do even MORE shopping...



...yet buy absolutely nothing. One more photo...



...then it's time to check in at O'hana's! I mean, O'hana! Um...'Ohana!

 

[nilla]

This guy's watching over us:



I decide to kick it all off with a Kona Fire Rock:



The meal is served "family style". That is, if your family is from Hawaii. Or Kenya, but have a birth certificate that says Hawaii. Or Hawaii, but with people who claim your birth certificate is fa- ok, enough of that. Let's eat.

Bread!



The bread AND the butter are really good. Nice start.

Pot stickers! Sticky wings!



The wings are my favorite thing at this meal. The pot stickers are good, too. The salad is a salad:



Here's another winner:



Or should I say, "winnerS". The noodles are fantastic, and the veggies include the greatest veggie known to man, tiny little corn. Score!

Emily decides to flip the script and order off-menu:



Meat and shrimp skewers come out now:



I LOVE LOVE LOVE this meal...but it's seems like I'm alone in my opinion. For the second time today. Huh?

Dylan used to really like the pot stickers, but now, he could take our leave them. Not his favorite meal. Kristin no longer likes, well, much of any of it. She says that may be because she's still congested, but who knows. She's not in a rush to come back.

Also like lunch, all of us did really enjoy the dessert:



That's a hard one to mess up. The check comes, we pay, and out we go. Back to the Magic Kingdom!

 

[nilla]

And what better way to mark our return to the Magic Kingdom than with an official Magic Kingdom Castle Shot?



How about TWO official Magic Kingdom Castle Shots?



We were looking right into the sun for that last one. Em takes a hastag selfie, or whatever they're called...



...and it's off to ride Big Thunder!

"We're not gonna make it!"

Stop it, Dylan. Yes, we are. And yes, we do. I even get a photo of a "5" for the Trip Report when we reached the ride.

The train goes up the hill (those water bottles are STILL down there in the guyser, Disney. Clean that up!), and the train goes down the hill. And around all fancy crazy, like it's known to do. This ride is great.

This next series of shots are part of a collection I call "Dylan's Patience for Picture Taking Quickly Deteriorates":









The first photo can actually be explained by saying he didn't know Kristin was taking a picture.

After the ride, we are finally able to grab some Space Mountain Fast Passes (10:15), then get in line for our carryover FPs for Splash Mountain from earlier.

 

[nilla]

The trip into the Br'er Pat- um, I mean, Briar Patch was photo-free this time, as was our train ride from Frontierland to Main Street U.S.A. We did get the camera out once we arrived, however:



Then this happened:



Down the steps, and we decided to check out the wait for (hopefully talking) Mickey. I forget the exact number, but I'm guessing >= 30. But Tinkerbelle is only 5 minutes. Ok, let's go!

Dylan's not happy, but too bad. In we go!



The Pixie Hollow layout is the same as it was when it was back in Toontown or whatever it was at the time. For those of you who have not experienced it, they do some sort of "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" movie tie-in, for whatever reason, except with magic glitter instead of a shrink ray. Regardless of the means, the ends are that we're small. Small enough to visit Pixie Hollow without causing some major destruction.

You know, Disney should use this technology more often. Imagine the space they'd save if the new Avatar land in Animal Kingdom were super-miniature? I've seen pictures of people making little glass monkeys the size of a pin head, so the concept's already been proven. Throw in the shrink glitter, and you have instant park addition, nano-style.

Anyway, we're small now, and there's Tink!



Or, there's a gigantic tea cup! Wait - I guess it's a regular-sized teacup. I forgot we're small.

If it were Day 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12, you would have seen an extreme close-up of this clock:



Instead, you get this:



And a nice one:

 

[nilla]

Alright, now it's time to really meet Tinkerbelle. I decide to bite my lip about her near-assassination attempt on Wendy, since the little girl seems to like her:



Ooh, careful, Em:



Welcome, humans!



As you can see, we just did another patented nilla Trip Report Teleport (tm), and now we're at the Laugh Floor! Or in the queue, at least. I don't recall how we got big again after Pixie Hollow, but I think we're big again.

For whatever reason, this queue took for-ever. I don't know if they had to clean something up in the theater from the last show (churros?) or what, but it seemed much longer than it should have. It wasn't crowded at all.

This is my favorite performer:



And here's Emily's hat, now with Tink signature!



I don't remember why, but I managed to offend Emily somehow around that moment and she didn't want to talk to me. Ok, moving on!

We get inside, and the show is hilarious as always. Afterwards, we did another patented nilla Trip Report Teleport (tm), this time to...



...Sunshine Seasons?

 

[nilla]

Does anyone else get the feeling I just posted a photo from the next day? If so...correct! I guess the photo from the Laugh Floor queue was the last one we took that night. So guess what you get to enjoy?

A boring, all-text update! Aren't you lucky?

So here it goes:

Each kid has a certain amount of money they got from grandparents and whatever that they could spend on anything at Disney. Dylan wants a Build Your Own Lightsaber, but wants it to be a double-sided Kylo Ren design. For those of you who know Star Wars, that means Darth Maul meets Kylo Ren. For those of you who do not know Star Wars, that means a really big toy we have to somehow get into the suitcase.

It's all good, though, since they retract. It's not all good, though, because Merchant of Venus doesn't have the Kylo Ren-style attachment. It's a very limited selection of pieces here. I guess we'll try again at Hollywood Studios.

We ride the People Mover next, then watch Wishes from the side of the Tomorrowland Terrace. We're basically standing right along the fence of the Wishes Dessert Party, sneering at the upper-class snobs with their desserts, drinks, and preferred viewing area. We are the 99%, and we can see the fireworks, too...provided they're launched high enough to clear that gigantic tree in front of us.

We hit Space Mountain next to redeem our last FPs of the night. We can't get enough of this ride. I think if the family had to pick a consensus #1, it would be this. Such a good one.

Exiting the park around 10:15, we just made it onto the bus back to Coronado. It seems like we're always sprinting to the stop at this park!

The bus was packed, and we were up front. The driver started telling jokes over the intercom near the end of the trip, which is always fun. I tell him one that Dylan heard at school:

"Why did Simba's father get trampled by the wildebeest?"

"Because he didn't Mufasa."

(rimshot)

The bus arrived at Station 2, and people got off. Why did I just tell you that? Was it exciting? Was it interesting?

No. But something DID happen at Station 3, so I felt I should lead with the first stop. Because 2 is 1st at CSR. Unless it's a Disney Springs bus. Then, 2 is 2nd.

Anyway, the bus arrived at Station 3, and people got off. The driver shut the doors, but the bus won't start. What?

He tries a couple of things, then announces that he needs to reboot the bus. Reboot the bus? Really? That's an option?

Wow. So he reboots the bus (really), and it comes back up after a few minutes. Still no go. What?

Of course, we probably could have just walked from there, but we were tired. So we stuck it out.

Finally, the driver noticed that a stroller was back by the rear doors, and was in the sensor zone that causes the bus to not go, even if rebooted. The parents move the stroller, and it's off to Station 4.

Then, it's off to bed. We're tired, but we don't plan on getting up early tomorrow. No wake-up call. No alarm. Just sleep.

Then, Epcot.

Good night!

(Up next, Day 6 - Saturday - Epcot)

 

[KnK]

I read about this in princessesandpascal's Trip Report, having before not realized there were any hidden Pascals in the area. A tour guide tells me she heard there are five of them. Alright, let's find them!

We found 12. Official it list 10 but we think 2 of ours don't count.

 

[nilla]

We found 12. Official it list 10 but we think 2 of ours don't count.

Wait, what?? Now we have to go back and check again!!

 

[QueenJen]

Hey!!! Way to offend your upper-class snob TR readers (such as myself). Ok, not really.

Sounds like you all have had some up and down dining experiences. Maybe the 'girls' will find some new favs next year......ok, maybe Kristin-since Emily will likely order Mac n Cheese.

If a ride is down during your fastpass time, does that mean it remains available for use the rest of the day and you can obtain additional selections after the 3rd time period has ended? I think that is what I picked up from your Splash FP+. If so, that is good info.

Ahhh....teenagers and photos. I wonder if Emily will get to the point where she will not like pics mom/dad take. Of course, selfies are different.

 

[nilla]

Hey!!! Way to offend your upper-class snob TR readers (such as myself). Ok, not really.

Make no mistake; I'd become nouveau-riche in a heartbeat, if the opportunity arose

If a ride is down during your fastpass time, does that mean it remains available for use the rest of the day and you can obtain additional selections after the 3rd time period has ended? I think that is what I picked up from your Splash FP+. If so, that is good info.

Correct! It may also carry over days...not sure. We had that work a few years back with Test Track, and people used prior-day FPs on Frozen Ever After when we were there (spoiler!). It's great that they do that!

Ahhh....teenagers and photos. I wonder if Emily will get to the point where she will not like pics mom/dad take. Of course, selfies are different.

I hope not! I don't know that she'll get embarrassed by us. She's too attached to Kristin for that

 

[HeyIt'sMe]

Magic Kingdom ..... a nap ..... dinner at the Poly ..... Magic Kingdom. That day is practically perfect in every way!

'Ohana - We haven't eaten there in a long time (since Emily was 3 and she'll be 19 next month). Last year Steve asked why we never eat there and I told him because he said he didn't like it. He said he doesn't even really remember it. So, we're giving it a try. I'm excited but nervous since I hear such mixed reviews.

Teenagers and photos ---- Emily still lets me take pictures of her once in a while at home. But at Disney World she's very willing to have her picture taken. Steve & I always wonder if/when we'll ever go to Disney alone again. When we ask Emily that question her answer is always "never". She jokes...well, I think she's joking...that she'll leave her husband and children at home to join us on every trip.

 

[ArielSRL]

Fun times at the MK. We are definitely doing 'Ohana next trip, but we'll do breakfast. I love the Tangled bathroom area! And I loved all your rides on many of my favorites! Oh Dylan...with the photos. That was too funny. Poly is beautiful, as always. My MIL's fave resort that she always takes my SIL and family to stay at, but never us. But I digress....

Looking forward to more!

 

[BlvInMagic]

Wow, day 5 sounded like a fun and action-packed day! I totally started cracking up when you posted the pic of the Beast's castle and made the Rankin-Bass reference. YOU ARE SO RIGHT!

 

[Clarf]

If you can't tell from the picture, what's happening is the rain is coming down, down, down, in rushing, rising riv'lets. Which isn't surprising, since the forecast was calling for scattered or isolated thunderstorms for the majority of our trip. I guess "scattered or isolated" translates to "over without a trace in 20 minutes", because that's what happened here. Let's hope that luck continues, because I can deal with a 20-minute downpour over a complete washout.

Typical Florida. All the times I've visited it will rain like this for a short time almost every day. Of course I've never been there during a hurricane.

I check in at the outside kiosk, and quickly figure out that "thank you very much" is Japanese for "I have no idea what you're saying." We finally bridge the language gap, and we get our bleeper. Absolutely Fabulous reference there, if you didn't catch it. Can't wait to see the new movie!

How was it? I can't wait to see it!

In a strange turn of events, Dylan is actually eating the salad. What?

WHAT????? I can't believe it.

Our chef liked to loudly announce the food that was being served or prepared. The first example was "volcano sauce!" when he poured it on the roll. The kids were amused by this, and we ended up hearing it for the rest of the trip.

This would totally be us, thought Jason and I would probably be the ones driving the kids crazy saying it over and over again.

Dylan ate great! He even ate the veggies. I let him try a shrimp, and he loved that as well. Unreal!

We asked him afterwards if he'd eat that stuff at home. He said only if we make it on a hibachi grill and exclaim, "soy sauce!" while making it.

and I think you should do it.

Love how the concrete lights up!

That is one of my favorite things about Epcot.

And Dad likes to try to avoid puking:

.

I can't ride it anymore or I will DEFINITELY puke. Thankfully Jason is good and likes to spin it fast.

Now, for no reason whatsoever, is a scene from the Rankin/Bass animated classic "The Castle that Did Something to Christmas":

Wow, that photo really DOES make it look like a Rankin and Bass show. The theater I work for has done Rudolph for Christmas for a few years, and our set looks exactly like the show!

I originally wanted to eat dinner here again (one of my favorites), but we couldn't get ADRs for it. The compromise was lunch. I loved pre-booking the meal, and it turned out to be a pretty good idea.

The pre-order is genius. I'm so glad that's an option!

Oh, that's the line for ordering. Man, pre-ordering was a fantastic idea. No wait! It looked like the line to order was at least 20 minutes long. Pre-order, folks!

Yes, yes do it! Pre-ordering is the best.

Kristin also couldn't believe there was no cheese on her sandwich. Or there was very little cheese that was hard to spot and impossible to taste. Either way, cheese WAS listed on the menu. She was not a huge fan of this place before, and has completely written it off now.

That's too bad. That sandwich should absolutely have cheese on it. We loved BOG. Sorry your experience was less than stellar.

When we last left off, we were coming out of Be Our Guest, ready to do a little more Magic Kingdoming before heading back to Coronado Springs. We have FastPasses for Splash Mountain that are good until 12:30, and it's right around 12:00 now. We make a pit stop at the Rapunzel restrooms, then decide to do a little Pascal hunting.

I had no idea this was a thing. Next trip! For sure! I'm glad you didn't post the pictures and ruin the surprise.

Because he's a lot like this guy:

Hilarious.

.

We love Poly too. It's our (my) dream resort. We'll get there one day.

This guy's watching over us

Um, I guess that's good? He's scare off some creepers I think.

The meal is served "family style". That is, if your family is from Hawaii. Or Kenya, but have a birth certificate that says Hawaii. Or Hawaii, but with people who claim your birth certificate is fa- ok, enough of that. Let's eat.

I just spit out my soda when I read that. So funny.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this meal...but it's seems like I'm alone in my opinion. For the second time today. Huh?

Wow, really? It looks amazing to me. Emily got the mac and cheese? Sigh.

This next series of shots are part of a collection I call "Dylan's Patience for Picture Taking Quickly Deteriorates":

Hahahahahahahahahahaha!




Poor Dylan having to see Tinkerbell. You'd think being the teenage boy he is, he'd love seeing her. Oh well.

I saw that Sunshine Season picture and questioned your touring style. You aren't park hoppers! But now it makes sense.

Side note, non-Disney related, I know you've said you and Dylan really love roller coasters. We were just at Cedar Point in Sandusky Ohio for the first time last week. O.M.G. Amazing. If you are ever able, take a weekend trip. Jason and I finally got to ride Millennium Force after seeing it on a show on the Travel Channel like 15 years ago. It lived up to the hype as did most of the other coasters we road. Lucy rode them all to and loved them.