ONE YEAR of WDW starts NOW! Nov. 2015 WDW trip & beyond! Now with JANUARY & MAY!

[Joben]

UGGGHHH You are killing me here. Such long posts full of so many things I need to discuss. And as I look through the quotes 99% are about food and booze. Well you asked for it here we go.

cinnamon bake was amazing!

I think we need to eat here just for the cinnamon bake. I don't like cinnamon or breakfast pastries for that matter but I would love to see the look on my DW face when this came out.

someone got their chair taken away.

He Larry Us

We made some progress.

Not on that fruit bowl

we went to Sum of All Thrills

Love this ride, so sad they are closing it before we get back

currywurst and paprika chips

is this only during the F&G festival? REALLY want to try this

Burnt Ends Hash at the American pavillion.

I have tried this....SO good with just the right amount of Jalapenos

get my slushy in a regular cup

BEST ADVICE EVER!!!

bourbon barrel aged Labatt

Once again where has this been?!!? I mean I consider myself pretty well versed on WDW food and drink. I have been during the F&G show. I know all the nooks and crannies of Epcot (or I thought) Os this something new. This is definitely a Stacy must do.

ritual Harmony Barbershop haricut. His barber (barberess?) was great.

Barber, I have a lady Barber. Is the Harmony really a Barbershop? The difference for me is a Barber is legally allowed to use a straight razor on you. A straight razor shave on the back of the neck feels so good, way better than just an electric trimmer. So we had a plan to have Gus's first haircut there. He will be eighteen months then, but I don't think he is going to make it, the hair is just getting so long. I think we may have an "accident" with scissors near his head soon.

I’ve worked as a waitress; I know how this works. Sigh.

So I worked many years in the industry too and you did the right thing. Sometimes things go wrong. I've had bad nights as a waiter, I don't fault others for having them either. However what matters i how the situation is handled. If apologies are made and some sort of effort is put forth to make the customer happy than that is how things get better. Sounds like this manager didn't want to do anything more than just apologize. And that is where the real mistake was made. I'm sure you could go back again and not have a repeat performance.
Another great chapter in your TR, really enjoying it. I love how you guys can surprise me with things that I have never seen before. You also have some pretty savvy advice. UGH 252 days to go...sometimes the countdown on the phone is not such a great thing. I may be making an attempt at a TR this time, it's just going to be a trip filled with so many firsts.

 

[Joben]

BTW when I say you are killing me with such long posts, please don't stop.

 

[bmbmd]

After breakfast on Father's Day, my wife and two grown kids who were home for the weekend asked how I would like to spend my special day. So, we gathered in the living room and binge-watched Underground Teapot-every last second of it. I can't tell you how much we enjoy you two and your Disney obsession. Our kids are all educated, employed, and live elsewhere, so now is our time for occasional jaunts to WDW. Like you, we are more interested in food and drink and just enjoying the parks than ride after ride after ride. Thanks for all your hard work in documenting and presenting the Teapot. Good luck with the rest of the year.

 

[Li Li]

As always i am left starving after one of your updates!!!

I adore all the PP and Selfies! Yes rain and Epcot are one of the same.. always. If it doesn't i would think something was very wrong. I am so jealous over your GG Characters! they were a HOOT!

They were a hoot! So great! Yes, Epcot has seemed to equal rain in our past two trips. I knew you would relate!

so way behind, but trying to play catch up

That is cool that you got to board early with the exit row! That is random that they didn't like your gallon sized bag for toiletries ... I've stopped putting things in to a bag entirely and never gotten stopped. Guess I just look less suspicious than you

I've heard very good things about the pool at Coronado .. well, you know, when it isn't undergoing unscheduled maintenance/is May. Your drink looks good and refreshing!

Cute encounter with that kid in Indiana Jones ... we have "Mommy and Daddy drinks" too - which my oldest will then tell the other kids "that means it has alcohol in it!"

If you think that was bad no knowing if the Storm Troopers were good or bad, before seeing the movies when we were walking through the queue for Star Tours my oldest asked if the Ewoks were good or bad

Breakfast at the Garden Grill looks pretty darn good! That cinnamon bake looks amazing! We've only done dinner there but loved the character interactions and Farmer Mickey is pretty darn cute!

Fun meet with Goofy!

.. no, no, he's saying Boo-urns, Boo-urns,

I usually go for the reposado tequlias but I might need to try that extra anejo one

I've never heard of the Disney Hipsters but I feel like that is a major fault in my life that needs to be corrected. I realized a while ago that I am an accidental hipster in that I have facial hair, drive a hybrid, lived in Brooklyn, grow my own vegetables, and have a love/obsession with craft beer.

Those Croque Glaces are amazeballz! And that slushy drink sounds pretty good and good call getting it in a regular cup - good tip!

I usually just hit up the beer cart in Canada that sells Unibrau beers, but I will have to remember the new "bar"

Sorry for the bummer of a meal at Maya grill but goes to show the importance of service in that you indicated if a few things had been corrected you would have raved about the place. definitely think speaking to a manager when that many things are off makes sense

Of course I look more suspicious than you!

Wait, you've shown Olivia at least one Star Wars by now, right??

I'm more of a reposado girl myself, but that Anejo was amazing!

Well, it sounds like Disney Hipster is definitely in your wheelhouse!

 

[Li Li]

And as I look through the quotes 99% are about food and booze.

Yep, sounds about right for one of our trips!

Love this ride, so sad they are closing it before we get ba

So sad! I am holding a smidge of hope that they get a new corporate sponsor for the ride as its a really great Epcot ride.

is this only during the F&G festival? REALLY want to try this

Sadly, I have only seen this listed during F&G.

Once again where has this been?!!? I mean I consider myself pretty well versed on WDW food and drink. I have been during the F&G show. I know all the nooks and crannies of Epcot (or I thought) Os this something new. This is definitely a Stacy must do.

The Canada "bar" is definitely new as they clearly just made room in the gift shop for it. But it was nice and dry and the CMs were very friendly to chat with.

Barber, I have a lady Barber. Is the Harmony really a Barbershop? The difference for me is a Barber is legally allowed to use a straight razor on you. A straight razor shave on the back of the neck feels so good, way better than just an electric trimmer. So we had a plan to have Gus's first haircut there. He will be eighteen months then, but I don't think he is going to make it, the hair is just getting so long. I think we may have an "accident" with scissors near his head soon.

Not a true barber as no straight razors that I know of, but they do have some A+ barbers there.

UGH 252 days to go...sometimes the countdown on the phone is not such a great thing. I may be making an attempt at a TR this time, it's just going to be a trip filled with so many firsts.

Just live vicariously through us for now as I'm sure we'll need to read your TR in 252 days to get us through probably not having a trip planned for 2017.

 

[Li Li]

After breakfast on Father's Day, my wife and two grown kids who were home for the weekend asked how I would like to spend my special day. So, we gathered in the living room and binge-watched Underground Teapot-every last second of it. I can't tell you how much we enjoy you two and your Disney obsession. Our kids are all educated, employed, and live elsewhere, so now is our time for occasional jaunts to WDW. Like you, we are more interested in food and drink and just enjoying the parks than ride after ride after ride. Thanks for all your hard work in documenting and presenting the Teapot. Good luck with the rest of the year.

Wow, thank you so much. I feel truly flattered. I'm glad you enjoyed our perspective and enjoyed. And Happy belated Father's Day!

 

[Li Li]

A morning at DHS (lots of pics)

As usual, Nigel got up before me. Since we had done carry on luggage only, he went off to do laundry to get through the rest of the trip.
He got some great early morning shots of the resort.

And then, my lovely husband brought breakfast back to the room for me. He’s a keeper.

We had an egg, chorizo, and cheese sandwich and a breakfast burrito. The chorizo sandwich was good, but oh my god, that burrito was fantastic!! It was ham, egg and cheese with salsa verde and choron sauce, which is apparently a bernaise sauce with tomato puree added to it. Just so tasty; we loved it. If loving breakfast foods are wrong, I don't want to be right.

After our breakfast, we headed off to DHS. We actually had FPs to use that we had actually pre-booked.

We drove over to DHS, once again using the “back” entrance. We had a good parking space, and headed off to the entrance. We went to the side entrance over by Guest Relations which was reliably not busy and entered the park in no time!

Our first FP was Rock n’ Roller Coaster set to end at 10 am, so we hustled over. The time stamp says we rode at 9:54 am, so just made it! Also, red card!

And art-y shadow pic.

After this, our next FP was Tower of Terror FP starting at 10:10. Since we were running ahead of schedule, we did standby at 20 minutes.

And the rode again with our FP. We got the back row both times!

After our favorite Twilight Zone hotel, we grabbed some Photopass pics on our way down Sunset Blvd.

We leisurely made our way over to Star Tours for our final FP at 11:15 am. Another red card!

And I made Nigel take some tourist pics on a speeder.

We stopped by the former Writer’s Stop, which I guess is still Writer’s Stop but different. Here’s their new cold case.

 

[Li Li]

Since it was lunch time, one guess where we ended up. Yep, our favorite lounge in DHS, the Brown Derby.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

We had the Cobb Salad (of course!) and the Crispy Bites. And I actually took menu pics to describe what we had!

So, basically, fried cheese stuff which was excellent, as usual for the Derby. Our server was also top notch, and I made sure to include her name in a complimentary email to WDW after our trip. I always want to acknowledge those CMs who are fab at their job.

After the Brown Derby, we caught the Stormtrooper March back to the Launch Bay.

We followed the Stormtroopers for a very special meet. Yes, our Disney Visa was about to pay off in the form of a special meet and greet with the one and only, Kylo Ren!

Guys, he was so intimidating! Just like his grandfather, Darth Vader. Looking back on it, I am so so grateful that we got the opportunity to meet both Darth Vader and Kylo Ren. Seriously, top two meets in all of WDW. My favorite meet and greets probably goes, 1) Talking Mickey (cause he has to be first! In addition to being great); 2) Darth Vader; and 3) Kylo Ren.

After meeting “Ben”, I hung around the Launch Bay because I was determined to meet some Jawas. I had even brought along some stuff from our room in the hopes of making some trades. Luckily, we found them.

So, not sure if you can hear clearly on the video, but I did do some trading. I offered one of the coffee packs from our hotel room, but when I told the Jawa that it was decaf, he/she immediately threw it on the ground! It was hysterical. The Jawa finally accepted a coaster that had a picture of the WDW Castle on it and gave me a shiny stone in return. All in all, a successful meet.

We decided to head back to the resort and visit the quiet pool near our room. We were in Casitas 1 and I think the quiet pool was in between Casitas 2 and 3. It definitely lived up to its designation as quiet, and we had a nice relaxing swim before our exciting evening plans.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

T

Wait, you've shown Olivia at least one Star Wars by now, right??

Yes - in preparation for episode 7 we watched episodes IV - VI so she is fully up to speed on what an Ewok is now and is a fan

Still would like to get them into Star Wars rebels but hasn't happened yet

They (especially Peter) are also fans of the Lego Star wars videos (which, I must admit, are rather humorous)

 

[NigelSTW]

Here is the accompanying link to the video.

 

[Joben]

finally a sunny day for you guys.
Nigel...Dude...it's a vacation! sleep in a little why don't you. JK I enjoy the early mornings at the resorts. Temps are usually pretty good, there is almost no one around, it's just a pretty enjoyable time. Although a bed is pretty enjoyable too, but that is what the afternoon is for...naps and quiet pools (with a gin & tonic in hand)
Did you notice you had a couple of stalkers on your ride photos? (the two guys behind you on RRC and ToT)

I love the theming in ToT. So glad the rumor of a Guardians of the Galaxy overlay of the place seems to be false. We did a backstage tour of the place that I highly recommend, actually I recommend every tour I have taken, So I'm guessing they are all pretty good. Some can get pricey but it's one of those one time things so I think it is worth the money. (Fun Fact, they have to replace the cobwebs in ToT every ix months)

Seriously the Red Cards?!?!? I'm getting uber jealous! Why are the red cards so desirable? We pretty much have the same reaction as you two, however we get one maaaaaybe two cards a trip, they must really like/trust your faces.

So the video of Nigel asking if you should call him Ben was hilarious. We don't really do the meet and greets, it just feels so awkward. Pretty much how you guys looked meeting Kylo. I think that may change in the future, but I will have a cute lil nugget to deflect any attention away from my awkwardness. The Jawa was super cool though, and I think I could deal with that kind of meet because there is no face and no talking.

And I totally regret giving the Bucs props as now they have pulled ahead in the division, last game today go Cards!

 

[Li Li]

finally a sunny day for you guys.
Nigel...Dude...it's a vacation! sleep in a little why don't you. JK I enjoy the early mornings at the resorts. Temps are usually pretty good, there is almost no one around, it's just a pretty enjoyable time. Although a bed is pretty enjoyable too, but that is what the afternoon is for...naps and quiet pools (with a gin & tonic in hand)
Did you notice you had a couple of stalkers on your ride photos? (the two guys behind you on RRC and ToT)

I love the theming in ToT. So glad the rumor of a Guardians of the Galaxy overlay of the place seems to be false. We did a backstage tour of the place that I highly recommend, actually I recommend every tour I have taken, So I'm guessing they are all pretty good. Some can get pricey but it's one of those one time things so I think it is worth the money. (Fun Fact, they have to replace the cobwebs in ToT every ix months)

Seriously the Red Cards?!?!? I'm getting uber jealous! Why are the red cards so desirable? We pretty much have the same reaction as you two, however we get one maaaaaybe two cards a trip, they must really like/trust your faces.

So the video of Nigel asking if you should call him Ben was hilarious. We don't really do the meet and greets, it just feels so awkward. Pretty much how you guys looked meeting Kylo. I think that may change in the future, but I will have a cute lil nugget to deflect any attention away from my awkwardness. The Jawa was super cool though, and I think I could deal with that kind of meet because there is no face and no talking.

And I totally regret giving the Bucs props as now they have pulled ahead in the division, last game today go Cards!

Ha, I didn't notice those guys until you pointed that out!

Wow, totally jealous you got a tour of ToT. Fingers crossed that they leave the Florida ToT alone!

Yeah, awkward meet and greets when no kid buffer, but still fun to do. The Jawas were super cool.

Go Bucs! It looks like we are both going to be battling for second though.

 

[Li Li]

So, yeah. I kind of slacked off and disappeared there. Sorry. I have actually been more obsessed with planning for our upcoming trips. End of August and September. Yep, they are kind of back to back. But I was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to a educational conference taking place in...you guessed it, Orlando. So, I couldn't possibly go to Orlando without fitting in a quick trip. Nigel and I will go for the weekend and then I'll have my conference. So, I've been making spreadsheets, fastpasses and modifying reservations to take advantage of passholder discounts. But now, I am trying to get back on track. So here goes nothing.

 

[Li Li]

We so Fancy, part deux

Continuing with our trend of fancy events at the Grand Floridian (V&A in Nov.), we return to GFlo for another new event, Afternoon Tea!

I was very excited to do this. I’ve seen lots of reviews, and it looked like a great experience.

We drove over to Grand Floridian and walked up to the hostess stand. It seemed mildly busy but not crowded. We were seated almost right away, and led to a table for two with this view.

It was gorgeous! And a gorgeous day for it too. I was pretty obsessed with the view.

But we had decisions to make.

Pondering the menu. It is kind of daunting, but we decided on the Cheshire Tea. 3 courses plus dessert and a pot of tea. And of course, I wrote down a bunch of details and yet completely forgot to write down which teas we got. I think I got the Silver Leaf (white tea), and Nigel got the Darjeeling. (Or maybe one of us got Oolong? Grr, I’m so mad at me for not writing it down!)

Cute cozies and real sugar cubes!

Any who, First Course is a selection of exotic fruits and cheeses.

Our fruits were papaya, mango, kiwi and pineapple and raisins on the vine (ooh, fancy). The fruits were all really fresh and really good. Nigel even ate some and he normally eschews fruit.

Oh, the flower was edible too, but as our waitress said, it really doesn't taste like much. True story. The cheeses were good too, and there was a little honeycomb in a little bowl too.

Second course – Medley of finger sandwiches accompanied by berries, (more!) cheese and lavosh.

According to my notes, the cheeses were “some kind of sage” and Tillamook cheddar. The sandwiches were watercress and cucumber, egg salad, open-face golden beet with goat cheese, curry chicken. Oh, and a little onion tart thing…that I immediately gave to Nigel. No thank you to onions.

I really liked all the sandwiches, but I think my favorites were the curry chicken and surprisingly (to me) the golden beet and goat cheese sandwich. Who knew I liked golden beets?!

The third course was a buttery scone and jam tart that also came with the Finale course, the desserts. The Finale lists a choice of house-made pastries, strawberries and cream, or English Trifle.

First, the jam tart and raisin scone served with orange marmalade, clotted cream and lemon curd.

So, for the desserts, I chose the Trifle which was a berry trifle. Apparently, the trifles change with the seasons according to our waitress. During Halloween, it will be something with pumpkin and cranberries at Christmastime, etc. So, I chose the Berry Trifle with the fancy GF initials.

And Nigel chose the pastries. Well, when the “pastries” arrived, it was three selections, one of which was a chocolate-covered strawberry, which is Nigel’s idea of torture as he hates strawberries with a passion. Not as much as apples, but way up there. So, when I noticed this I asked the waitress if he could have an extra chocolate pastry since he wasn't going to eat the chocolate strawberry. She said they were not supposed to substitute like that, but she would do it. Which was very nice of her. If she had declined, I would have understood and that would’ve been fine, but let’s be clear about my position. You offered a dessert of pastries. A chocolate-covered strawberry is not a pastry. That is a dessert fact. Okay, enough pedantics from me, onto the pictures.

The desserts were delicious. Although, I could only finish half of my trifle. I know, for shame!

Decorative mirror and room.

After tea, we walked around the Grand Floridian pool area. We hadn’t really checked it out since they had their big refurb a couple of years ago. It really is nice and pretty. Although a little scary and very sad looking back at some of the pictures after the unfortunate gator attack.

After tea, it was back to the resort for a quick change. Needed to make sure we were in comfy clothes and ready for the big event...

 

[Joben]

So, yeah. I kind of slacked off and disappeared there. Sorry.

OMG the waiting has been horrible!!!

Yep, they are kind of back to back.

Sooooo jealous.

I was very excited to do this.

So as an Underground Teapot subscriber I have some advantage in background information on your TR. And unfortunately I will probably be referencing the video in your TR a lot.
The real question is how excited was Nigel for this. I'm sure he was a good sport, but High Tea??? My mom is a consummate tea drinker and loves to do this with my sisters, but she would never ask any of the boys. (if you are keeping score, 5 sisters 6 brothers)

Cute cozies

Tea cozies....I was wondering what those were from the video. I had made up in my mind that they were little pillows for you to take a nap after tea....okay I really didn't think that but I was hoping.

No thank you to onions.

HOW DO YOU LIVE!!!!
I have a brother who hates onions and picks them out of everything, he said it was a texture thing. He had one exception, he liked them on White Castle burgers, then we found out that the onions are really cabbage soaked in onion juice. (Fun Fact)

lavosh.

Isn't that the best name? Not sure what it is but it sounds like it should be just the best tasting thing ever. Clotted cream hover sounds like it should taste awful, but I have tried that one, and I know it is good....The English gotta love em right.

Although a little scary and very sad looking back at some of the pictures after the unfortunate gator attack.

So when watching your video this was all I was thinking about when I saw the family playing on the shore, I think that is the exact spot of the incident. how many thousands of people did the same thing as that family. I think the biggest problem is the bubble effect. You know you are in Disney and what can really go wrong. I know there are alligators in Florida. I've seen alligators in the Fort Wilderness canal, like I was less than five feet away and it scared the crap out of me. But I would never have seen it coming.

 

[NigelSTW]

Here is the accompanying video link.

 

[NigelSTW]

The real question is how excited was Nigel for this. I'm sure he was a good sport, but High Tea??? My mom is a consummate tea drinker and loves to do this with my sisters, but she would never ask any of the boys. (if you are keeping score, 5 sisters 6 brothers)

I was raised by a mother who was a huge Anglophile and made we watch Upstairs Downstairs with her as a kid. I was into it. Not the strawberry "pastry" part of it, but the rest of it was very proper, and civilized. Good show old bean and all that. I'm "Nigel" after all.

 

[Li Li]

So as an Underground Teapot subscriber I have some advantage in background information on your TR. And unfortunately I will probably be referencing the video in your TR a lot.
The real question is how excited was Nigel for this. I'm sure he was a good sport, but High Tea??? My mom is a consummate tea drinker and loves to do this with my sisters, but she would never ask any of the boys. (if you are keeping score, 5 sisters 6 brothers)

My goal is to catch up with the videos this week; we'll see! But feel free to reference away to the video.

As Nigel said, he was actually looking forward to the tea. I actually wavered on it at one point, but he urged me to keep it.

5 sisters, six brothers?! Only child here.

HOW DO YOU LIVE!!!!
I have a brother who hates onions and picks them out of everything, he said it was a texture thing. He had one exception, he liked them on White Castle burgers, then we found out that the onions are really cabbage soaked in onion juice. (Fun Fact)

I'm the same as your brother! Although I've never tried White Castle burgers because of the onions, mind blown over that fact!

Isn't that the best name? Not sure what it is but it sounds like it should be just the best tasting thing ever. Clotted cream hover sounds like it should taste awful, but I have tried that one, and I know it is good....The English gotta love em right.

Lavosh is just fun to say. Like smock. I read on another report how someone had Clotted Cream ice cream over at Harry Potter at Universal. She said it was amazing, but I think I'll stick to having it on scones.

So when watching your video this was all I was thinking about when I saw the family playing on the shore, I think that is the exact spot of the incident. how many thousands of people did the same thing as that family. I think the biggest problem is the bubble effect. You know you are in Disney and what can really go wrong. I know there are alligators in Florida. I've seen alligators in the Fort Wilderness canal, like I was less than five feet away and it scared the crap out of me. But I would never have seen it coming.

I know, I agree entirely. When I was there at the time, my thoughts were only about that lake water being kind of gross and possibly bacterial. An alligator attack there where those kids are just never even crossed my mind. Just so sad.

 

[Li Li]

After Hours at Magic Kingdom!

So, yes, we did it. Of course, we had heard about the whole Extra Morning Magic and After Hours events and realized that they would be going on during our trip. And then I got an email saying that they were offering the After Hours ticket to AP holders at half price. Hmmm. I read up on some reviews from those who went to the events, and it seemed like a really nice, non-crowded event. And since Rivers of Light never materialized and thus I never made an ADR for a ROL dining package, well, we decided to splurge.

We got back to the Magic Kingdom a little after 7 pm, which is when they started taking tickets for the After Hours event.

We had actually bussed over since I knew they would have bus transport no matter how late due to the event and figured it’d be better to do that than possibly drive back tired.

Oh, we ordered probably less than a week before we left. Before we left, I got an email saying we would be getting a package on our second Disney day? I wracked my brain and then realized they had mailed us hard tickets for the event that were arriving after we were in Florida. Luckily, we stopped by Guest Services the day before, and they gave us hard tickets in case we needed them.

We queued up at the tapstiles where a CM held a sign saying After hours or something and received our lanyard card.

The actual event itself was (duh) after hours from 10 pm to 1 am. So, the card had on the back all the attractions that would be open for the event, which was actually quite a bit. And nice reference to have.

Here’s some pics of Main Street. And we walked back through the Castle to see the Cinderella mosaics since it was actually open for once!

We decided to hit up the attractions that would not be open after 10. First up, the Hall of Presidents.

A nice time as always (and the less said about potential additions after this November, the better, right?).

After leaving our forefathers, we saw the gazebo where Tiana and/or Naveen meet with a nearly empty line. Except when we went to join, the CM warned us that it was just Naveen. Hey, that was okay with me. I wasn't going to shun a Disney prince! So, we met Naveen.

Nigel told me to ask him where Tiana was, so he told this cute story about how Charlotte ran by shouting to Tiana that Louis had eaten all the beignets and she had to make new ones. It was very cute, and he was a nice meet and greet. And it turns out, I was lucky because apparently they no longer have Naveen doing any meets.

After meeting Naveen, we headed to Tomorrowland passing through the crowds all lined up for the Electrical Light parade.

Since I had noticed the Peoplemover would not be open after 10, we obviously had to make that a priority.

The Laugh Floor was our next stop.

Too true Monstropolis.

We hadn’t been to this in awhile, and it was fun and funny as usual.

We decided to snack up for the evening, and since we were in the area, we could also check another experience off our list, seeing Sonny Eclipse!

We grabbed our chicken nuggets and fries (snack of champions), looked at the toppings bar, and grabbed some pre-packaged sauces.

Sadly, no pics of Sonny, just video, but it was cute in that it was a step above Chuck E. Cheese.

After snacks, Tomorrowland was really starting to clear out, and Wishes would be starting up soon. Formulating a loose plan of attack, I thought we should take the walkway from Tomorrowland back to Storybook Circus as that part of the park would probably empty out first and then move out from there.

Since it was an empty line, we took a ride on Barnstormer. Woo. Yeah, more of a kiddie coaster but why not. We actually rode twice without getting off just because we could!

We then went over to Dumbo. Wishes started up just before we boarded, and so we got to watch pretty much all of Wishes from Dumbo, which I thought was a fun experience. Also, the CMs let us ride three times in row without getting off so that was fun.

Once Wishes and our third ride were done, we decided to move on. But randomly, there was a photopass photographer set up right at the Dumbo exit so we grabbed some pictures. Other than ride photos, that was the first and last PP we saw.

After Hours was officially under way! (these posts might be longer than I thought!)

 

[Li Li]

After Hours, part 2

After Dumbo, we walked up to Voyage Under the Sea. I’m still trying to find the Incredible Mr. Limpet in here.

Does Scuttle look like he’s been hitting the sauce?


Seven Dwarves Mine Train was surprisingly hopping. Moving well, but this was where a lot of people had headed obviously. Everyone was directed through the FP line.

Our next priority? Finding the “free” ice cream and soda/water!

We then headed over to Peter Pan since that always has a ridiculous wait time. Also, one of my rationalizations for this event was that we could check out the new/revamped queue without the wait. Wrong! Queue was closed off, and it was just a straight walk on. D’oh! It was fun though, always a nice classic ride. We even rode it twice.

A little disagreement/bad note-taking here as I think we went to Haunted Mansion next, but Nigel professes we didn't. But this picture from an Apple phone shows a time stamp of 10:52.

Tangled toilets.

Time stamps say we did Big Thunder next, which I know we rode twice as it’s our fav ride to do at night.

We bypassed Splash for now as Nigel did not want to take the chance of getting too wet to enjoy the rest of the night.

Next, we decided to head to Jungle Cruise, which was just us and one other couple. The skipper was great and still really into her role for just the four of us, so it was fun.

Our empty boat.

Nigel was feeling a bit noshy, so we headed to Casey’s Corner. For some reason, we just got one plain hot dog. That was $7. *Faint* To think, we can go to Costco and get a hot dog and soda for $1.50 and yet we pay 7 bucks for a Disney hot dog. Okay, cost-awareness moment over, I promise.

We also got some lovely pictures of the Hub area which was pretty empty. (When I say “we”, I fully admit that the best pictures are usually Nigel’s pics.)

We walked back to Tomorrowland and I talked Nigel into doing Buzz before we hit Space Mountain. He’s not a fan of the ride. And we were literally the only people on that ride.

We went over to Space Mountain, and true to form for us, it broke down! The same thing happened to us before, I think during a Halloween party, when we were hitting the low ride times and Space broke down just as we reached the loading area. We cut our losses and headed off to Splash Mountain but ended up with a detour for a second ride on 7DMT.

We got back on track to Splash and actually had a full boat. Didn't get too wet though.

Time was ticking away. Who knew 3 hours could go so fast! We decided to try for one last ride on Haunted Mansion, and here’s where our only hiccup of the trip occurred.

We walked past 2 CMs and got in line exactly at 12:50 am. I know because I checked my watch trying to calculate if we could fit in one more ride after HM. However, as we stood, the only people in front of the doors, we waited and waited. We actually heard the opening from the Ghost Host start through the closed doors! So, after 5 minutes, we went back out through the queue only to encounter a chained off entrance which we had to get over to get out of the ride. I was pretty annoyed. I mean, the CMs watched us get in line!

Shaking it off, we walked up to It’s A Small World where I asked the CM if they were still running and she said yes. Not taking any chances this time! We hopped on our own private boat and were off on the happiest cruise to ever sail.

And we got a fun surprise at the end of our ride!

Cool, huh? I actually think this is a fun part of the My Magic plus stuff.

Having tried to wring every last drop of fun out of Magic Kingdom, we started heading out via the Castle. Out the way we came in. And as you may have seen on the video, we ran into some princesses on our way out.

Remember this shot from earlier in the evening? Here's the 1 am shot.

We leisurely walked down Main Street taking pictures along the way. Fun story, I saw a guy walk down Main Street with a box (like the kind ice cream bars are packed in) full of sodas, waters and ice cream bars. Obviously, he was able to talk a CM into giving him some leftover snacks and drinks on his way out. I will confess to being jealous. I didn't see any carts on our way out.

Sorry, if that was picture overload.

All in all, it was a fun experience. Although there was just no way to do and see all the open attractions, we enjoyed the night a lot, especially the nearly empty park. Definitely a great experience.